The Kids Are All Right
by Agent-M-0167
Summary: Do the kids of the future have the same problems that their parents did? Follow Veronica and Gabriel Mason on their adventures of the classroom, relationships, jobs and the usual high school problems.
1. Anticipation

_This is a future fic based on the children of the students from Degrassi: The Next Generation. The story will follow the escapes of Gabriel and Veronica Mason; the son and daughter of Spinner Mason and Jane Vaughn. There will be a few other kids that will round out the story, but will mainly focus on the Mason children. The fictional characters of Degrassi: The Next Generation belong to their respective trademarks and companies. Please keep in mind that I do not make ANY profit from the properties of Degrassi as well as the fictional settings that they come from. The children of the copyrighted characters are mine alone. _

_While there will be a listing of couples here and there in the pages of my story, I ask that you keep an eye out on my Profile page in the next couple of days for a full history of Spinner and Jane as they become a couple again. I will also have a listing of some of the major characters that will mainly interact with Veronica and Gabriel; as well as their parentage. There will also be a listing of other couples, favorite characters and teachers. This is mainly for background information. _

_I thank you for your patience on this story. Feel free to read it and comment on it. While not a stranger to writing fanfiction; I admit this is a new genre for me. _

_I would proudly like to introduce for you..._

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><p><strong>The Kids are All Right<strong>

**Chapter One: **Anticipation

Veronica lay on her bed reading Pride and Prejudice for the third time this summer. She placed the bookmark and closed the book. She placed the book on her nightstand and she rubbed her eyes. She glanced at the alarm clock and sighed. In twelve hours she would be starting her high school career at Degrassi Community School. She turned and placed her feet on the floor and moved to her dresser and sat down in the chair; facing the huge mirror attached to the dresser. She took the pencil out of the bun and let her hair fall onto her shoulders. She shook her hair loose by turning her head quickly from side to side; letting it fall a little looser onto the shoulders. She sighed at her reflection and stuck her tongue out at herself; disappointed with her appearance. She looked up and noticed the family picture that was on the mirror. She took it down and studied it; looking at each member of the family.

Jane Mason (Jane Vaughn at work) was a junior partner at the law firm of Brooks and Brooks. Mom had gone off to California to study law after she graduated from Degrassi. She had gotten dumped by her Dad. She had cheated on Dad and took off across the country. Mom had excelled in her studies, but when Grandma Valieri had gotten ill; Jane continued her studies at University of Toronto. She happened to run into Dad one day and they started being friends again. They went from friends to dating for a few years and then getting married. Mom had worked hardest to get into the firm when her brother came along and then herself two years later. James Brooks (Uncle Jimmy to herself and her brother) had left a spot for Mom. Once she was in school, Mom went back to work at the firm. The rest of it is history.

Veronica was almost a dead ringer physically for her mother; her long hair that was a sandy color and hazel eyes, curvy figure and medium height and mild skin tone. She was just as beautiful as her mother and just as smart; if not smarter than her as well. Veronica was proud of herself in the aspect that she was moved up a grade. She would have been starting her eighth grade year this but felt bored and tested to start ninth grade instead. She knew that this would be a challenge, but would take the challenge and run with the opportunity.

Dad was the relaxed one; the one that you could go to if you really got in trouble. The man known to the world as Gavin "Spinner" Mason had worked at the Dot coffee shop after high school until a friend had caught the place on fire. They had rebuilt the place and Dad worked there for another year, before the owner gave the place to Dad. Dad had turned a coffee shop into one of those trendy restaurants like Applebee's or Friday's but better. There wasn't a night that Spinner's Place wasn't busy. Dad had his sister run the finances of the business (Auntie Kendra was way better at numbers) while Dad was head chef. Even Uncle Lucas was working in the kitchen under Dad. Lucas' daughter and Ronnie's cousin Izzy would work waitstaff when she was home from college. It was a true family affair. Dad had set up some money for charities with what he was making at the restaurant. Mom and Dad always wanted to do more for the community.

If she was a carbon copy of her Mom; Gabriel was a carbon copy of her Dad. Gabe looked a lot like Dad; dark hair spiked with some gel, dark brown eyes and mischievous grin. He was a bit taller than Dad and more physically built. Gabe was a year ahead of her in school and was one of the popular kids. Veronica was always a bit jealous of her brother, but knew that was the way it was. Veronica was the straight A student while Gabe was the B average student; Gabe was an athlete (gymnastics and martial arts) while she was the bookworm. He was friendly with the whole school and she was friendly with the smart kids or the outcasts. She rarely got in trouble while Gabe would get into trouble at least once or twice a month. No matter how they were different; they were close as siblings could be. Mom and Dad didn't treat either one of them differently. If she had some academic competition; the whole family was there to cheer her on. If Gabe had a meet; the whole family would go and cheer him on.

They even made a point to have dinner together as a family at least four times a week.

It was because of these times together; they could tell each other what was going on with their lives. There was no judgment; there was a discussion. They would work together as a family and would succeed as one as well.

"Hey brainiac!"

Veronica let out a scream at her brother's voice. She grabbed the hairbrush off of her dresser and threw it at her brother. The brush found its mark and hit him right in the forehead. Gabe had taken the hit and rolled his eyes up into his head and fell like an oak tree onto her floor. Veronica covered her mouth in shock and her eyes wide in terror. Gabe lay on the floor unmoving. She removed the hands from her mouth and looked at her brother.

"Gabe?" Veronica said in barely a whisper.

"Gabe? Are you okay?" She asked a little louder than before.

Gabe didn't move. Veronica moved to his side and shook him.

"Gabe? I'm sorry that I threw the brush. Are you okay?"

Gabe had popped up into a sitting position on the floor; making Veronica jump back a little. Gabe grinned at her.

"Why yes, I'm doing great. How are you?"

Veronica scowled and pushed him. Gabe rolled on his back and pushed himself onto her bed. He sat on the bed and smiled at her.

"You're a jerk Gabe."

"Sorry about that." Gabe shrugged at her. "I knocked three times but you were spacing out." He laughed a little at her. "Were you thinking of rewriting an entry on Wikipedia that you saw earlier today?"

Veronica stuck her tongue out at him. "No. I was thinking."

"You mean worrying Ronnie." Gabe pointed at her. "You play with your hair when you're worried about something."

Veronica's eyes grew wide. "I'm not worrying about anything." Gabe snorted at her in disbelief.

"Yeah right. I know you little sister and almost all of your mannerisms."

She looked at him annoyed. "Remove your skanky butt off of my bed. I don't need to smell dishpig when I sleep. What did you want anyway?"

Gabe moved off the bed and picked up the brush from the floor. He handed it back to her just as she put her hair in a ponytail.

"Mom wants to talk to us about school tomorrow. She wants to meet in her office."

"Both of us?"

Gabe rolled his eyes. "No sis; just you and your stuffed animals."

Veronica shook her head and followed her brother out of her room and down the stairs. She looked at her brother's back and saw the tattoo that he got for his birthday a few weeks ago. It was filled in black Egyptian Ankh with tribal looking wings. The banner below it said Carpe Diem; Seize the Day.

"It turned out nice Gabe."

He looked over his shoulder with a grin. "Hurt like hell too." Gabe leapt down the last few steps to the main floor. He smiled back at his sister.

"You know Dad would take you to get one on your sixteenth. All you would have to do is ask him. Mom would take you if you didn't want Dad there. Hell I'll go if you want me to go."

Veronica shrugged this time. "I'm not sure what to get."

"Mom always said to get ink that meant something to you."

She looked at him confused. "Mom has a tattoo?"

Gabe nodded. "Three if I remember correctly." The two moved walked across the living room and kitchen. He stopped in front of the office door. "Remind me to ask her again."

Veronica knocked on the door. "Coming in."

Gabe opened the door and held it open for Ronnie. Ronnie walked in and took the chair next to the door. Gabe leaned against the wall next to his sister.

Jane smiled at them. "Took you two long enough." She looked at her son. "What happened to your forehead? There's a mark there."

Gabe shrugged. "Hairbrush."

"Did you scare your sister?"

"She was spacing out. I knocked three times. I ended up shouting at her and she winged me in the head."

"I really thought that I hurt him." Ronnie said. "He didn't move after it hit him."

"I said I was sorry Ma, I swear."

Jane shook her head. "You two will be the death of me." She looked at her son. "Rough day at work?"

"When isn't it when it's ninety-five degrees in the dish room?" Gabe smiled. "At least the water's free. I must have downed a gallon at work. The good news is that I'm no longer dishpig anymore. I'll be waiting again when I work next."

"Dad's okay?" Ronnie asked.

Gabe nodded. "You know how Sundays are Ronnie; he's trying to get out after getting prep ready for Monday. He's got inventory with Aunt Kendra tonight too."

"Shit, I forgot that was tonight." Jane groaned.

"Mom, I'll get us off to school." Gabe said.

Jane nodded. "Thank you for reminding me Gabriel. Your uniforms are washed and dried. They're in the laundry basket. Get what you need for tomorrow tonight."

"What about lunches?" Ronnie asked.

Jane sighed. "You get to buy tomorrow. After tomorrow, you two are on your own. I'm stuck working on an important case this week. Dad will have to work most of the evening shifts with Uncle Lucas taking vacation this week for Izzy."

Both kids nodded at their Mom.

"I'll go over everything for the week then." Jane looked at the two of them. "You can have a friend over on school nights, but they're gone before nine. Make sure that whatever you make for dinner, you make enough for each other. There are a few meals pre-made already. Homework has to be done before you go to bed."

Jane turned to Gabe. "Help your sister out at school. Show her the ropes and answer any of her questions for her without any issues. I know that Degrassi can be a maze. Don't get into trouble in the first week." She got serious at this point. "No girls over at all."

"Really Ma?" Gabe groaned. "That's not fair!"

"Gabriel I'm serious." Jane pointed at him. "No shenanigans."

Gabe looked defeated. Jane turned to Veronica.

"You'll do fine at school. Listen to your brother and learn a lot." Jane sighed. "If there are any issues; let your brother know and if you can't find him go to a teacher or the principal. You know Snake and he'll do what he can." Jane sighed again. "Same goes for you; no boys over at all."

Veronica nodded. "I don't think that will be a problem Mom."

"Ronnie, will you stop that?" Gabe asked. "High school is different. For the most part you won't get picked on. If you do, find me." Gabe chuckled. "If you find a boy that likes you, then definitely find me. I'll talk to him for you."

"Gabriel."

"Sorry Ma." Gabe smiled slightly embarrassed. "Ronnie's just nervous. She was playing with her hair when I knocked the first time."

Ronnie turned and stared at him. "What the hell Gabe?"

Jane smiled and patted her daughter on the knee. "Ronnie I was nervous as hell when I started going to Degrassi. I had a couple of friends when I started, but I made more. You'll meet new friends and have a great time."

"Besides you know me and Tony and Jules. We'll take care of you." Gabe spoke as he was braiding her hair. "Mr. Simpson said that a whole new group of niners are starting this year. You won't be alone sis; trust me."

Ronnie nodded at this. She knew that she wouldn't be alone on her first day.

"Anything else about school?" Both kids shook their heads. "Anything at all?"

Gabe raised his hand. Jane nodded to him. "How many tattoos do you have again?"

Jane smiled. "Let me see how yours is doing." Gabe took his shirt off and turned around. "Looks real good. You've been using the Aqua Pour?"

"Yes Ma."

"Good." Jane smiled. "To answer your question; it's three. I have the heart-shaped lock on my lower back for your Dad. I have each of your names right here." She pointed to the area of skin just above the left breast. "The last one is somewhere that only your Dad will ever see."

Gabe shuddered. "I don't want to know."

Jane grinned. "My own son whom takes after his father and ends up being a prude." Gabe smiled at his Mom. "We'll leave it at that. Goodnight you two and get some sleep. Dad will pick you two up after school."

Gabe walked up to his Mom and kissed her on the cheek. Ronnie hugged her and placed a kiss on the same cheek. Gabe opened the door and let Ronnie out. He shut the door and the two headed for the stairs. Ronnie got to her door and watched her brother go to his door. She cleared her throat, which got his attention.

"Did…did you really mean that?" Gabe raised an eyebrow in confusion. "You know; about me hanging out with you guys? Did you really mean it?"

Gabe smiled at her. "Of course Ronnie. You're okay in my book and Jules loves and adores you. She thinks you're cute." Gabe moved closer to his sister. "Besides didn't she tell you that you two could talk about girl things if you needed to?"

Ronnie nodded. "She did."

"Then she meant it." Gabe shrugged. "If I've learned one thing from the Hogart kids is that they mean what they say." He pulled her into a hug. "I'll take care of you. Now go to sleep and we'll take care of tomorrow when it's here."

She smiled and thanked him. Gabe grabbed his clothes and went into the bathroom. Ronnie went to her bed and lay down. She started to get sleepy when she smelled a foul odor coming from the comforter on her bed.

"Damn it Gabe!" She shouted through the wall; pounding on it at the same time. "Now I have to wash my blankets!"

She started to take off the comforter and grumbled. She swore that she heard Gabe laughing the entire time.

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><p><em>Not too bad for a start. I know that it really sounds like a "perfect family" to most people. It's a little weird, but it's set up for a reason. Look forward to the second chapter to be up in a week or so. <em>


	2. The Boys and Girls are Back in Town

_The next couple of chapters will introduce the major side characters that will mainly interact with the Masons. Keep in mind that the next couple of chapters will be on the first day. It kind of flows together...or not. Eh, either way; sorry for the lateness of the new chapter._

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><p><strong>Chapter Two: <strong>The Boys (and Girls) are Back in Town

Veronica Mason leaned against the pillar that was at the bottom of the stairs. She was pulling at the yellow polo shirt; not liking how it fit. It clung to her skin; making her feel very self-conscious. The beige skirt was not to her liking as well; the cut was just above her knee. She would have preferred the length to be past her knees. She sighed as she waited with Gabe.

Gabe on the other hand was sitting cross-legged on top of the pillar. He looked like the uniform didn't bother him. He could pull off a polo shirt, but why purple? He finished the outfit in a pair of desert camo pants and Chuck Taylor hi-tops. He had his drumsticks out and was drumming them on the concrete of the pillar.

Ronnie sighed again. Gabe glanced at her annoyed and continued to keep a rhythm on the concrete. He had taken to his Dad's drum set like a duck to water. He had been practicing for the better part of the last two years. He felt that his skills on the drums were getting better each day. Ronnie on the other hand was beyond annoyed. She grabbed the sticks from her brother.

"Will you stop?" Ronnie growled, pointing the sticks at him. "You are so annoying!"

Gabe quickly took the sticks back and put them behind his back. He glared at her.

"You dragged my ass out of bed at six this morning; knowing damn well that the doors don't unlock until seven-thirty." He took out the thermos of coffee that he made and took a drink. "You're lucky that I didn't flatten you."

She put her hands on her hips. "Oh really?"

Gabe nodded. "Really half-pint." He put the thermos away and played with the drumsticks again. She glared at him again. "Knock it off Ronnie. I'm not in the mood. You know that on foot; it takes about twenty minutes to get here. By car it takes five or less. I don't need your shit about wanting to get here early. You're nervous."

Veronica was about to retort when Gabe placed his hands on her shoulders and forced to her sit down on the steps.

"Quit being twitchy about this." Gabe took his place back on the pillar. "You will be fine. We'll compare schedules and go from there. You need to relax otherwise you'll have an ulcer before you turn twenty."

They sat in relative silence for a few minutes until a tricked-out pickup pulled in front of the school. Gabe grinned at the truck. Ronnie looked at him with curiosity. Gabe motioned towards the truck as he left his perch. Ronnie followed behind her brother. They stopped at the passenger window and watched it roll down.

Gabe smiled. "Hey Uncle Jay!"

Ronnie looked at the passenger. "Uncle Jay? What are you doing here?"

Jay Hogart smiled at his best friends' kids. "What up kids?" He looked at Gabe. "What are you doing here so early?"

Gabe glanced at his sister. "Someone decided to wake me up at six to make sure she would get her stuff ready for the first day."

"Nobody likes a suck up." Spoke the voice from the driver's side. The door opened and out stepped the driver. Gabe smiled while Ronnie groaned. Antony "Tony" Hogart stepped out of the truck. Tony was Jay and Manny's oldest child. He looked similar to his father with longer hair that was jet black. He pulled the hair back in a ponytail and grabbed the silver ball cap off of the dashboard. He was sporting a red polo with a black windbreaker over it, beige khakis and Jordan sneakers. He walked over to the sidewalk and exchanged pleasantries with Gabe.

"You're a little fish in a big lake now midget." Tony smirked at Ronnie. She rolled her eyes and sneered at him.

A bookbag was tossed over to the sidewalk from the bed. A tall brunette with red streaks in her hair stood up. She was the mirror image of her Mom except with the emerald green eyes of her father. She styled herself in the punk/glam rock scene with a black thermal and purple polo over it. She had multicolored bracelets on both arms and rocked multiple piercing in both ears. Her khaki Capri pants were slightly worn here and there and black combats were tied to the top.

"Tony quit picking on Ronnie." She said as she leapt over the side of the bed.

"Juliette." Jay glared at her. "Quit using my truck as a jungle gym."

"Sorry dad. It won't happen again." She said as she hugged Ronnie.

Juliette turned to Gabe. "Miss me?"

He pulled her into a tight hug. Gabe whispered in her ear. "I missed you kid." They broke the hug and smiled. "Did you have fun in New York with Mom?"

Juliette looked him in the eyes and mouthed later. "It was okay. All of the fun stuff was eighteen and over. I barely left the apartment."

"Hey I need you guys to help Junior with finding his way." Jay said as he held the door open for the youngest Hogart. Jason James Hogart was the perfect mix of parents; dark hair and eyes, Manny's Filipino features with some of Jay's physical makeup. He smiled at the group.

"Little Jay's starting high school?" Gabe asked.

"Yeah, we're really proud of him." Jay smiled. "He had to get the brains from Manny. He took the placement tests last year and tested out of eighth grade."

Ronnie smiled at J.J. "I guess we're in the same boat then."

"It'll be cool Ronnie." J.J. nodded back. "We're in the big leagues now."

"I hate to break up the fun." Tony grunted. "We need to get our classes and locker assignments Dad."

The kids said their goodbyes to Jay and started up the stairs. They noticed a limo pull up to the front of the school. They watched the back door open and noticed a strawberry blonde woman step out with two kids that looked the absolute same. They had rust colored hair; the girl's hair longer than her brother. They were identical in skin tone, slender build, eye color; even down to the slight freckles around the bridge of their noses. A jet black haired girl followed after the strawberry blonde.

"I heard that some diplomat and his wife were sending their kids here." Juliette smiled, leaning on Gabe's shoulder. "The parents apparently went to school here a long time ago."

"Most of our parents met here." Ronnie commented.

"Identical twins starting as niners? How wild is that?" Gabe asked.

"You two started at the right time I guess." Juliette placed a hand on Ronnie and J.J.'s shoulders. "Emily Cameron starts this year too."

"Auntie Em's daughter?" Tony asked.

Juliette nodded. "Most of our parents' children are starting this year. Don't you listen to your younger siblings?"

Gabe laughed. "Well it should be fun for these two. The rest of us will have to deal with the usual bull."

The group headed in and made their way to the front desk. They got their schedules and locker assignments and met in the main hallway of the school. They were about to compare schedules when Principal Simpson came up to them.

"Hey welcome back." He smiled at the older students. "I would like to borrow Jason and Veronica for a few minutes."

The boys nodded to him. "They're not in trouble Mr. Simpson?" Juliette asked.

"No not at all." He smiled. "I just wanted to talk to them about making their transition into high school earlier than usual. I'll make sure that they make it to their first class."

"Okay Mr. Simpson." Gabe nodded. He turned to his sister. "If you need me, go talk to Mr. Simpson. If not, I'll see you at lunch. We'll save you a spot outside."

Mr. Simpson led the two students off to the office. The other three headed the other direction. They found their lockers in the grade ten area and put their excess supplies in the lockers. Tony took off towards his science class with Mr. Isaacs, Juliette and Gabe had Media Immersion which was just around the corner. They decided to hang out in the halls for a few minutes. Gabe leaned against his locker and Juliette stood in front of him.

"I really missed you." Gabe half grinned.

Juliette blushed. "I wasn't gone that long. Two months isn't long."

"Long enough Jules." He pulled his best friend into a tight hug again.

Juliette blushed a little more. "Gabriel Joseph; you're good and bad for me."

"How do you figure?" They pulled out of the hug. "All I'm saying is that you're gone for two months and you come back looking hotter than you did before…"

Juliette broke away and lightly punched his shoulder. "This is what I'm talking about."

Gabe shrugged. "Come on Jules; even on your worst day, you come in looking great."

Juliette smiled at him. "Charmer."

"Yeah. Dad says that's a Mason gene." Juliette rolled her eyes and laughed. "So anything fun happen while you were out there?"

Juliette face lit up. "Dude! We're so going to NYC on Spring Break. Central Park is a rocking paradise! I went to so many punk and hardcore shows; I was spinning."

"I missed that?" Gabe groaned. "Jules; next time please bail me out of here and we'll tear it up! All I could do was go over our regular haunts and check out the usual shows."

Juliette smiled. "You still got to see some awesome shows; most of them for practically free. What are you complaining about?"

"I wasn't complaining." Gabe's eyes grew big. "I forgot to tell you!"

"What?"

Gabe was laughing. "I got busted by the cops one night!"

Juliette was shocked. "What happened?"

"I was out by the university; behind the law building. I was putting up posters for the hardcore show just after Canada Day. Ran into campus security; literally."

"You didn't run?"

Gabe shook his head. "How could I? They caught me just as I landed on my butt."

Juliette shook her head. "So what happened?"

"Ran my I.D. and took me home. I lucked out; Dad was home and got busted for curfew. I had to work as dishpig for a month."

Juliette grimaced. "Ouch; that sucks."

"No wonder the dishes looked like shit when the family was in there. I figured your old man had hired monkeys back there again." Spoke a voice from their left. They turned and noticed Ben Cameron walking up to them. Ben had a muscular physique and was tall like his Mom. He also had Emma's long blonde hair and brown eyes. While in his school uniform, he still dressed like a stoner/surfer.

"Hey Benny!" Gabe shook hands and followed up with a fist bump. "I thought I smelled the odor of bong water." Juliette covered her mouth, trying hard not to laugh.

He shook his head. "Bong water, dish bitch; it smells all the same. It smells like shit."

Gabe shrugged. While they weren't close friends; the two of them tended to hang out in all the same circles. They gave each other a hard time and that was enough for them. Benny had a tendency to be a jerk to most people and had a bad point of pushing a joke too far; especially if concerned the female populous.

"Digging the glam look there Hogart. You look good enough to eat." Benny smiled.

Gabe shook his head as Juliette rolled her eyes. "See Gabe says something like that and it's charming. You say it and it comes out as toxic sludge."

"It's all in the eye of the beholder Hogart." Benny smiled.

"So what are you doing over here?" Gabe asked.

"I was showing Emily where her locker was and headed this way. I've got Media first thing this morning."

"Us too." Juliette nodded. "Did all of our siblings start this year? J.J. started this year and Gabe's sister started this year too."

"Wait; Mason your sister's going here?" Benny asked. "Is she legal?"

Gabe stopped smiling and gave him a dark look. "Too far Cameron; way too far."

"I mean your Mom's hot and she's like forty? Is she the cougar type?"

Gabe rolled his eyes. "Dude…"

Juliette shot Benny a dirty look. "You're a pig."

Benny smirked. "You want to see pigs? Look what turned down our hallway."

The three looked and watched two guys walking down the hallway. They were big guys that looked like they were bodyguards instead of football players. The moving boulder was only known to the school as "Ogre" Morgan. He was a fat guy that was a tackle on the football team. He had long dark hair and rarely spoke in full sentences.

The taller guy was the star quarterback and alpha male of any guys' sports team. Shane Milligan knew he was the shit. A dead ringer for his father, Coach Owen Milligan; Shane was known to bully anyone and everyone. He hit on anyone of the female gender in the school and there were rumors that he was very aggressive to women. None of it could be proven because Coach Milligan would do what he could to defend his only child.

"Hey Ogre, look at the faggots over here." Shane sneered as they passed. "Biggest bunch of fruits that I've ever seen!"

Ogre chuckled. "Faggots. Funny man."

Shane smiled as he stared at Juliette. "Say Hogart; I'll make a woman out of you. All you have to do is ask."

"Not if you were the last lifeform on the planet." Juliette glared.

"I'd be a better lay than Mason there." Shane smirked. "At least he would make an attempt to please you. Stoner boy can't even get it up; too much THC."

Benny moved closer to Shane but Ogre got in the way. "Milligan I will tear your head off and take a shit down your neck. I'm more of a man than you'll ever wish you could be."

"Anytime pothead." Shane grinned. "Time and place limpdick."

Juliette got in-between the three. "Knock it the hell off!" She glared at the jocks. "Don't you morons have some weights to go lift?"

Ogre pushed Juliette on the ground. "I don't listen to whores."

Gabe moved in front of Ogre. He shook a finger in front of Ogre. "That's not the way to treat a lady Ogre. If you get some more I.Q. points; you might find a lady that might like you."

Shane smirked at him. "What do you plan to do about it dishboy?"

Gabe put his hands in his pockets. "Not a thing; you two did the work for me." He grinned and pointed behind them. The two jocks turned and noticed Mr. Del Rossi and a few new niners standing there. Shane turned and glared at him.

Gabe shrugged. "It sucks that you and the gorilla are going to miss the first couple of games of the new season."

"Alright you two, Simpson's office. Now!" Mr. Del Rossi smiled. "I'm sure that there are a few ninth graders that would like to make a formal complaint." Mr. Del Rossi ushered the two jocks to the office with about ten niners following behind him. Gabe moved to Juliette and helped her up.

"You alright Jules? You hurt?"

Juliette smiled. "My hero." She pulled her best friend into a hug. They broke from the hug and Gabe looked at his sneakers quite embarrassed.

"It was nothing Jules."

"Nothing? Dude, you got the biggest assholes in trouble on the first day." Benny clapped Gabe on the shoulder. "That's impressive."

Gabe moved a step away. "Dude, try bathing. Patchouli only covers so much."

"Can we celebrate later?" Juliette asked. "Class is going to start in like five minutes and I would like a good computer this year."

Gabe bowed and offered Juliette to go first. She smiled and headed down the hallway. Gabe and Benny followed behind her.

"So Gabe, about your sister…"

"Dude, shut up."

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><p><em>Just a little background information; Spinner and Jay remained friends after Jane originally broke up, while Manny stayed friends with Jane. When Jane came back to finish college at University of Toronto, the two women stayed friends. Spinner and Jay were there for Sean when he came back from Afghanistan (Sean came back home seriously injured from an I.E.D.). Manny was there for Emma when she found about what happened to Sean. Spinner ended his relationship with Emma so she could be with Sean. All six of the adults had managed to remain close friends over the years. That's why the kids all know each other and they're good friends with each other. <em>

_Thanks so much for reading! Keep watching for the next part of this story. _


	3. So Glad We Made It

_So here is chapter three for my fabulous readers. This scene follows right after the last chapter. I'm also introducing some of the new niners in this scene. Enjoy!_

_Most of my notes will be at the end; just for your information._

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><p><strong>Chapter Three: <strong> So Glad We Made It

Principal Simpson ushered the two students into his office. He offered them seats as he headed to his chair on the other side of the desk. Veronica looked around the office and noticed a lot of family pictures in the office. She smiled at the generations of photos that he displayed; it was like her home with all the family photos that they took over the years.

"Are we in trouble Mr. Simpson?" J.J. asked.

Mr. Simpson smiled at them. "Not this early in the day there J.J." He smiled at the two. "The truth of the matter is that I know that the transition from junior high to high school will be harder than the rest of your fellow niners. You both tested out of eighth grade and ended up here. I'm really proud of the two of you."

J.J. grinned at Simpson. "Thank you sir."

Veronica smiled at the principal slightly embarrassed. "Thank you."

Principal Simpson smiled at them. "You two should be thanking yourselves." He sighed. "I had troubles with both of you fathers, but your mothers were top students. I don't set goals for my students, but I expect nothing but the best from you."

"I know that it will be a challenge for the two of you." Simpson continued. "You two started at a great time. Most of the niners that are starting this year are all from former students that went here. I'm sure that you'll both make great friends here."

"If you need anything, please let me know." Simpson concluded. "I know that you have older siblings that will help you, but know that my door is open as well. Any of your teachers will help you along too."

The two stood up and shook hands with Mr. Simpson. They stood up and were about to step out of the office when a teacher stood in the way.

"Sorry kids." Marco Del Rossi looked up to Mr. Simpson. "Snake; I've got your first troublemakers for the year. I even have witnesses for them."

Simpson shook his head. "I'll handle them in a moment. I want to introduce you to two more of your students."

Marco smiled. "I know these two." He turned to each student. "You're Manny and Jay's youngest; J.J. That makes you Veronica; Spinner and Jane's little girl." Marco smiled. "I was waiting for you two before the Wonder Twins struck."

Simpson groaned. "What did the two of them do this time?"

"The two of them shoved eight students and stuffed three of them in lockers." Marco grumbled. "I saw Morgan shove Juliette Hogart and Milligan trying to start a fight with Benny Cameron and Gabriel Mason."

Simpson nodded. "Call Owen down here. He'll take care of his son. I'll call Clancy's father to come in." Simpson stood up and moved towards the door. "Go ahead and take your class and get started with your day. I'll handle them."

Marco nodded. "Alright niners; follow me to class!" Most of the kids were following with J.J. and Veronica at the end. Veronica turned and watched the two of them. She watched as Shane flipped her the bird. She turned and followed the class as she heard Simpson shout at Shane for the rude gesture.

"What is that guy's problem?" Veronica whispered.

"He's a jerk. He thinks that he is God's gift to women." Ronnie turned to see a girl about her height but slightly thinner. She had dirty blonde hair and brown eyes.

"Emily? Emily Cameron?"

She smiled at Ronnie. "Good to see you too hon. Congrats on being in the big leagues this year." The two girls hugged each other.

"Hey, that's part of the reason that I'm here." J.J. smiled as he hugged Emily. "All of my friends are starting this year. I didn't want to be alone."

"To the start of a new year." Emily smiled.

"Okay take your seats." Marco called out. "The announcements are about to begin."

The three found seats near each other. The conversations died down as they watched the monitor in the classroom. Veronica spent the time during the announcements to look around the classroom. She noticed the twins from this morning sitting next to each other near the front of the room. She noticed a dark skinned girl with long brown hair sitting behind the twins. The dark skinned girl looked in Veronica's direction.

"Rosalyn?" Veronica whispered.

Rosalyn Brooks smiled and waved to Veronica. She waved back and Rosalyn turned back to the front of the room. Veronica looked up front for a moment and then continued to search the room. No one else really caught Ronnie's attention except the stunning black haired girl next to her. She looked over to Ronnie as she kept staring at this girl. Ronnie blushed and looked down at the table she was sharing with this girl. Veronica tried to refocus and looked forward. All she could see were the deep blue eyes of the girl next to her. Ronnie glanced down at the table. There was a loose piece of paper in front of her.

_Hi! I'm Nicolette Coyne. May I ask your name?_

Veronica noticed the loopy writing of her classmate. She looked at Nicolette and smiled. Ronnie took out a pen and wrote back; passing the paper back.

_I'm Veronica Mason. My friends call me Ronnie. You're really pretty…_

Nicolette blushed at the note. She smiled and placed her fingertips to her lips to hide her smile. She wrote back and passed it back.

_Why thank you Ronnie. Please call me Nikki. You're pretty too. I've seen you before but not here at Degrassi. Have you lived in Toronto before?_

Ronnie looked back at the front of the room. The announcements were still going on. She smiled and continued the conversation.

_Thanks for the compliment even though I'm not that pretty. I'm really plain. To answer your question, I've lived in Toronto all of my life. I work at Spinner's Place as a hostess. Granted that I do that during school breaks and over the summer._

Nicolette smiled and wrote furiously on the paper. She pushed the paper back over.

_Nonsense! I think you're pretty. I've been to that restaurant with mother. I knew I had seen you somewhere before! You were very helpful. I just started here myself. I was going to a private school in New York before my mother passed, but I started here with my cousins today. It's hard not knowing anyone, you know?_

Veronica looked at Nicolette with sympathy. She noticed her eyes were glassy until she blinked. A single tear rolled down Nicolette's left cheek. Veronica patted Nicolette's hand; causing Nicolette to smile a little. Veronica was about to start writing when Mr. Del Rossi got the classes attention.

"Okay for your first day, you will get to know the person next to you." He smiled. "I know that it's a little childish, but you will give a oral report tomorrow to introduce your neighbor. We'll get to know each other a little better. Sample questions are on the board; so get to work."

Veronica turned to Nicolette. "I guess we got a good start."

Nicolette smiled. "I believe you're correct."

Veronica looked at Nicolette and felt her heart do a flip. Emily was right; this is the beginning of a new year for all of us.

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><p><em>I know that this is a little on the short side. I felt that breaking up and changing points of view at this point was essential. Keep in mind that while most of the niners at this point are really name drops; they will be more important to Veronica's side of this story in the future. Right now, I'm working on Gabriel's storyline in the next few chapters after the first day is over. Once I get to a good stopping point, I'll switch over to Veronica. That will probably be the way things will be done with this story. <em>

_Okay, so I really want to thank the readers on this one! You guys have made this month awesome! It seems that everyday there's at least one or two people checking out the story. Needless to say; it adds up really quick. Thank you to those that have been reading this story and thank you for those that have favorited or liked the story thus far. Continue reading; it will start to pick up and we'll start bringing in characters from TNG in special guest starring roles. _

_Next chapter: I'm introducing the final new character necessary to this point of the story. _


	4. The New Kid In Town

_While the children of the Degrassi: TNG students are mine; their parents aren't. They belong to their rightful properties._**  
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_Also, the titles of the chapters are taken from songs(or modified versions of song titles). They belong to their rightful authors.  
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_We continue on with our story.  
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><p><strong>Chapter Four: <strong>New Kid in Town

"Tell me again why you're taking Art I?" Juliette looked at Gabe in disbelief.

Gabe merely shrugged. "I don't know. It sounded like a good idea at the time."

The two continued down the hallway talking.

"If I remember correctly; I wanted to take Drama I this year, but for some reason it was one of the first classes that filled up."

Juliette looked at him confused. "Why Drama though Gabe?"

"To be the center of attention was one reason." Gabe smiled. "Everyone loves a clown."

Juliette glared at him. "You're an idiot sometimes. You could just cartwheel down the hallway like you did last year."

"Yeah and end up knocking down Simpson again?" Gabe snorted. "I don't need detention the first day back." Gabe stopped outside the Art classroom. "How did I go from being your hero this morning and now being an idiot?"

"Do you ever hear the words that come out of your mouth sometimes?"

Gabe rolled his eyes. "Whatever." He let her enter the classroom first and followed in behind her.

"Good morning Juliette." Mr. Chessex smiled. "Good morning to you as well Gabriel."

"Morning Mr. Chessex." The two said at the same time.

"Well it seems that I have both of the Mason children and two of the three Hogarts." Mr. Chessex smiled. "This should be an interesting year."

"Which one of my brothers signed up for art class?" Juliette asked. They turned and noticed J.J. sitting at one of the tables smiling. Juliette looked at him dumbfounded all the while Gabe smiled and nodded.

"You? Are you stupid or something J.J.?"

J.J. leaned back in his chair and put his hands behind his head. "No not at all sissy. I just finished with Art Appreciation and took Art I after that." He sat up in his chair. "Do you realize that very few guys actually take this class?"

Gabe laughed out loud as he patted Juliette's shoulder. "The kid's got guts." He moved and high-fived J.J. "He's right you know."

Juliette looked at Gabe disgusted. "So you're encouraging him?"

Gabe merely shrugged. "I'm here to be creative. Being in a creative setting actually helps my ADHD. I'm just agreeing with him about the male to female ratio. Between J.J., myself and maybe one or two other guys; we'll be outnumbered at least three to one."

J.J. smiled at his sister. Juliette could only roll her eyes at her little brother. She turned and glared at Gabe.

"Okay smart ass; go find somewhere else to work. I'm trying to keep my brother out of trouble and you're not helping." Juliette nearly growled at Gabe.

Gabe frowned at her. He placed a hand on Juliette's shoulder. "Just remember babe; you can only push a person so much before they push back." Gabe took off to the table near the back of the room and sat down.

"What the hell did he mean by that?" Juliette asked. J.J. merely shrugged.

"Ladies, ladies; won't you come join us?" J.J. turned to Veronica and Nicolette. "The more the merrier."

Veronica blushed and smiled; taking one of the seats offered. Nicolette sat down next to her. Juliette looked over at Gabe one last time before sitting down. Veronica looked at her brother confused.

"Why is he over there?"

J.J. looked over his shoulder. "Sissy said that he was being a bad influence on me. She chased him off or something."

Juliette rolled her eyes. "Gabe's being a drama queen."

Veronica looked at Juliette in a disbelieving manner, but shrugged it off. "Well I wasn't here, so I have no idea." She introduced Nicolette to Juliette and J.J. They sat and talked for a few minutes until the bell rang.

"Alright class, settle in." Mr. Chessex smiled, pulling a grade book into his hands. "I'm going to take roll and we'll go over what we're starting with today." Mr. Chessex went through the list and marked everyone that was there.

"Alyson Manning?" Mr. Chessex asked. "Alyson are you here?"

Gabe took a look around the room and chuckled to himself. He noticed that most of the students were female. The guys were J.J., himself and another boy that he didn't know. He looked back down at the sketchpad that was in front of him and continued to doodle. He heard the clicking of boot heels on linoleum and looked at the door.

"Sorry Mr. Chessex. I got here late today and I've been trying to catch up."

"Glad to see you here Alyson. Go ahead and take a seat anywhere that's open."

Gabe turned back to the pad and started to sketch. He didn't pay any attention to the late girl, until the boot clicks stopped nearby him. He looked up and noticed the late girl standing near him. She was beautiful, almost movie star beautiful. She stood tall for a girl her age with long copper colored hair. She wore a purple polo shirt and beige skirt but her style was more punk or gothic. She had on a long purple and black striped hoodie underneath the polo and wore black fishnets with combat boots. She wore a bunch of silver jewelry; a few rings, a choker, one necklace and a watch. She also had her left ear pierced several times and her right had about five rings or studs in it.

"Do you mind if I join you?" She smiled.

Gabe smiled and offered her to join him.

"Thanks. I'm Alyson."

"Gabriel Mason?" Mr. Chessex asked.

"Gabe if you don't mind sir." Gabe smiled.

Mr. Chessex nodded and continued on. "Veronica Mason?"

"Gabe huh?" Alyson asked. "I like it."

"Thanks Ally." Gabe smiled; causing Alyson to blush a little. "Sorry, I didn't mean…"

Alyson waved him off. "It's okay. I'm not used to someone flirting with me."

"Really?" Gabe looked at her confused. "I don't believe that."

"It's true Gabe."Alyson shrugged. "At least not knowing who I am helps sometimes."

Gabe looked confused as he turned to her.

"Your little sister?" Alyson motioned towards Ronnie's direction.

Gabe nodded. "Yep that's her. She started this year." Ronnie smiled at her big brother and gently waved. She pointed to the dark haired girl at her right and mouthed "new friend". Gabe smiled and gave a thumbs up. Alyson turned from Ronnie's table and nodded at Gabe.

"You two seem pretty close."

Gabe nodded. "That's my baby sister. I gotta take care of her."

Alyson smiled and glanced back at the table. She frowned a bit and turned back. She motioned for Gabe to come closer. She whispered to him. "Who's the bitch with the Bowie Complex? She an ex or something?"

Gabe covered his mouth, trying not to laugh out loud. He removed the hand from the mouth and took a deep breath.

"No it's nothing like that." Gabe stated. "She's my best friend. Juliette and I have known each other since we were like three." Gabe looked over and noticed that Juliette stopped looking in their direction and towards the front of the room.

"Then what's her damage?"

Gabe shook his head. "She's mad at me for some reason. That and I'm not giving her all of my attention."

"Poor baby." Alyson commented as she rolled her eyes. "How about not needing drama the first day at a new school?"

Gabe shrugged. "Just let it go. Jules is okay, but she's just having a moment." Gabe smiled. "Want to meet my sister at lunch?"

Alyson nodded as they turned to Mr. Chessex and the rest of the lesson. While they didn't know it; both Alyson and Gabe shared a passing thought. That thought was that they were glad to have met a new person that day.

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><p><em>Yes I know it's short. It's short for a reason. <em>

_I'm trying to set up the major players in the story at this time. If you've looked at the list on my profile page (which would help a little bit), there are a lot more students listed than introduced. Like I had said in the first chapter; Gabriel and Veronica will be the main focus points in this story. This is their story while at Degrassi. Since all of the players (at this time) have been introduced, the next couple of chapters will now fall into place.  
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_Also, I'm playing with certain events that happened in the past. While at this time it's not relevant; it will be in later chapters.  
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_So many thanks to you readers that keep following my story! I really can't thank you enough! It's nice to see hits on a story that recently has become a bit of a passion. I guess changing to a drama was what I needed to do.  
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_Thanks to CrashAgainstMySkin for the review that you left! It was a nice boost that I needed!  
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_Reviews are welcome, but totally not necessary. You guys rock!  
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_**Next Chapter: Juliette's moodiness is the start of drama!**  
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	5. New York State of Mind

_Here's Chapter Five. Enjoy and sorry for the lateness of this installment._

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><p><strong>Chapter Five: <strong> New York State of Mind

The bell had rung; ending class for the lunch hour. Juliette had disappeared when the bell rang. Gabe took his time gathering his stuff together and putting them back in his bag. He tossed the bag on his shoulder and looked up. Alyson had just finished loading her bag. She smiled back at him. Ronnie came up to her brother with Nicolette following closely behind her.

"Hey bro." She got a hug from her brother, which he returned.

"The day's been okay kiddo?" Ronnie nodded to him. "I'm glad to hear that." Ronnie moved back to Nicolette; J.J. had just joined the group.

"Gabe, this is my new friend Nicolette. Nikki, this is my older brother Gabe."

Gabe noticed the offered hand. He could tell that this new friend was upper class in the way that she dressed. He gently took the hand and leaned in to kiss it.

"Mademoiselle; it is an honor to meet you." Nikki giggled and blushed at Gabe. Ronnie rolled her eyes at her brother.

"Man, why didn't I think of that?" J.J. grumbled.

"You're not Gabe, J.J." Ronnie grumbled back.

"Sorry you guys; Alyson this is my sister Veronica, or as she prefers; Ronnie." Gabe motioned onwards. "This is Nikki, her new friend." He stopped at J.J. "This is J.J. or Little Jay. Guys, this is Alyson Manning." Everyone had said their hellos and looked at Gabe.

"Okay, so I have my lunch and I'm so going outside for some fresh air. Who wants to come out and join me?"

Alyson frowned. "Give me about fifteen to twenty minutes; I have to go talk to my dad about something." She looked at Gabe hopefully. "Could you save me a seat?"

Gabe nodded. Alyson smiled as she left the room. He looked at the other three. "Any other takers?"

"I'm going to go catch up with Rosalyn and try to meet Nikki's cousins." Ronnie shrugged. "Besides Emily Cameron has been going on about some P.E.T.A. thing that she went on this summer. I'll catch up with you in Creative Writing?"

Nikki's eyes lit up. "P.E.T.A.? Cool! Mom did a lot of projects with them!" She grabbed Ronnie's arm. "C'mon let's go meet up with your friend!" Nikki pulled Ronnie towards the door.

"Need money?" Gabe asked.

"No, I'm good!" Ronnie shouted; being pulled out the door and down the hallway. Gabe chuckled after his little sister. J.J. chuckled too.

"I like them; Nikki especially." He smiled at Gabe. "She's spunky!"

Gabe smiled. "Spunk is a good thing for a girl. Ronnie's not spunky; she's more sassy than spunky. Sassy is a good quality too." He turned to J.J, clapping him on the shoulder. "I guess it's just the guys for lunch."

"Yep." J.J. looked at Gabe. "Hey you think that…?"

Gabe sighed. "Yeah, let's hit the caf and then we'll find something outside."

_About five minutes later…_

Gabe, J.J., Tony and Benny were sitting on one of the park benches closest to the parking lot. Tony had found the solo bench away from the main doors so they could talk and not get overheard from the teachers and most of the students. Gabe shook his head and glared at Benny.

"Benny; just because pot's legal in Canada, it doesn't mean that you have to reek of it."

Benny chuckled. "What's the matter Mason? Jealous?"

"No man, I don't want to head to class smelling like the inside of your nuts."

Benny threw a pretzel at Gabe; which Gabe dodged easily. Gabe took a French fry off of J.J.'s tray and aimed for Benny's mouth. The fry was caught easily, much to Benny's delight.

"Gabe, quit taking my fries!" J.J. whined.

"Whose fries Little Jay?" Gabe smirked at him. J.J. faked pouted at him.

"By the way bro; thanks for the lunch." Tony smiled, taking a bite out of his cheeseburger. "We'll cover you on Friday's lunch."

"No big deal Tone." Gabe said, biting into his sandwich. "This is a one-time deal for this week. I might be able to cover again soon."

"Thanks Gabe." J.J. nodded. "We really appreciate it."

"Don't worry Little Jay; think of this as us not putting your head in a toilet and giving you a swirlee." Gabe laughed. "I think he's safe for a week or so."

Benny and Tony laughed along with Gabe. J.J. looked at them skeptically.

"We're kidding little bro." Tony said, wiping a tear away from his eye. "We had to screw with you on your first day."

Benny stopped laughing and pointed at the Hogart brothers; startling both of them.

"Dudes; why is your sister so screwy today? She was in a mood in Math II today."

Tony looked at Gabe. "It was something that her bestie said in English today."

"What did I say?" Gabe asked.

"What are you reading in Del Rossi's class?" Tony asked.

"Taming of the Shrew by Shakespeare; why?"

"Did you say something about Katharina's character in the play?" Tony asked.

Gabe shrugged. "I mentioned that about Julia Stiles' character in that one movie where she became shrewish and all fem-Nazi. She got screwed over by a player and didn't want it to happen to her again."

"You know, in your infinite wisdom Gabe; you take a good metaphor and dumb it down for the masses." Tony shook his head. "Yes, 10 Things I Hate About You is based off of Taming of the Shrew. What happened in that movie happened to Jules over the summer."

Tony glared at Gabe. Gabe looked at each one of the guys with a bewildered look on his face. Gabe shrugged in defeat as he looked back to Tony.

"Would someone fill me in on what is happening here?" Gabe nearly shouted.

J.J. looked to his older brother. "Tone; I really don't think he knows what you're talking about. I think he needs to know."

"Jay? Shut up." Tony turned back to Gabe. "You really don't know?"

"If you're talking about her and your mom staying in NYC; I talked to Jules for like all of five minutes today about it." Gabe grumbled. "If I'm telling you that I don't know what you're talking about, I don't know what you're talking about."

Tony let out a huge sigh. "What did she tell you?"

Gabe looked at the Hogarts confused. "Jules told me that she was going to the city with your mom for some Shakespeare festival in Central Park."

J.J. and Tony rolled their eyes. "Did it occur to you when you came to get me for the Dead Hand reunion back around Canada Day?"

Gabe thought for a moment. "I knew something was up when your mom was surprised to see me there. I was trying to figure out what was going on."

"She didn't tell you a thing." J.J. groaned. "Oh wow."

Tony cleared his throat. "I'm not sure if I'm the person to tell you what happened."

"Well I would like to know what happened." Benny sighed. "All this drama is killing my groove man."

Tony took a deep breath. "This all started last year. Do you remember that football player that Jules was dating just before grad?"

Benny nodded. "Evan Ridgley, the star receiver. What happened to him?"

"He ended up going to NYU." Gabe added. He looked at Tony in surprise. "You don't mean to tell me…"

Tony nodded. "Jules lied to a lot of people. She told my folks that she was going to NYC with you to check out the punk and hardcore shows and would be back before Canada Day. She told you that she was helping mom out with her makeup for the summer theater program."

"She ended up going to New York for Evan?" Gabe asked.

Tony nodded as he continued. "She took some money out of her account and headed up to mom's apartment. She basically lived with Evan until a few days after you showed up on our doorstep."

"So what happened?"

"I'm getting to it." Tony took a drink of his soda. "So after you showed up; mom and dad got into an argument about it. Dad was angrier that she lied to them than anything. Mom was more worried what she was doing than not."

"I don't get it." Benny chimed. "I get why Big Jay was angry, but what was the deal with Manny? Did something happen?"

J.J. stepped up. "Mom got knocked up at fifteen or sixteen. She ended up getting rid of it a few days after she found out."

"So mom was more freaked out that she was having relations with unknown guys." Tony took over. "She didn't want Juliette to go through the same thing that she did."

"She was afraid that Jules would get knocked up?" Gabe asked.

"Will you guys let me finish?" Tony argued. "You guys are worse than a bunch of grannies in a sewing circle."

The three looked at Tony in confusion. Tony got red in the face. "I've said too much, haven't I?" The three slowly nodded at him about this. Tony cleared his throat.

"Anyway, so mom and dad argued about it for a day or two. Dad finally decides that they're going to go check in on her." Tony shifted in his seat. "The rest of what happened is what I got from Uncle Sean on lunch a few days later."

Tony looked at Gabe and Benny. He continued on. "They left J.J. at Grandma and Grandpa's and took off for New York. They let themselves into the apartment and found the place trashed." Gabe and Benny looked at the Hogarts in surprise. Tony nodded. "It was real bad; empty food containers, empty bottles of beer, broken furniture. It was all over the place. They walked over to the bedrooms and opened the guest room first. It wasn't too bad; the bed was slept in and there was some garbage around the room. That's when they heard noises coming from the master bedroom."

"Noises? What kind of noises?" Benny asked.

"The kind of noises that you get watching SkinaMax; stoner." Tony shuddered. "So dad kicks in the door and catches both of them in the middle of it."

Benny and Gabe looked on with stunned looks on their faces. Gabe is the one that speaks first. "Are you kidding me?"

Tony shook his head. "Right in the middle brother; it was bad." Tony shuddered again. "So Evan in his infinite wisdom pushes Jules off of him and onto the bed. Jules missed and landed on the floor."

"According to Sean, she was in her glory." J.J. groaned.

"How do you know that?" Tony asked.

"I overheard it when Sean was over the other weekend."

Tony shrugged. "Hm, oh well." Tony turned back to the others. "Evan is gathering his clothes and trying to escape after this and guess who's in the way?"

"Your dad right?" Benny asked.

Tony nodded. "Oh yeah; the patented Hogart tackle to the ground and dad was wailing on this guy. Jules was trying to pull dad off of Evan while mom was calling the cops. The cops show up and arrest Evan and my dad."

"Why did your dad get arrested?" Benny asked.

"It would have been an assault charge technically." J.J. sighed. "Dad fought it explaining that he thought his daughter was in trouble. The cops bought it."

"Anyway…" Tony continued. "Evan gets in some serious trouble. Jules was fifteen at the time and Evan was eighteen. In the states and here; whether it's consensual or not, it's considered rape."

"Because Jules was underage?" Gabe asked. "So what happened?"

"Evan is looking at some jail time." Tony took a deep breath. "Evan lost his ride to NYU and he is now a registered sex offender. He pretty much screwed up his life; all over my sister."

The four sat in silence for a few moments. It was Benny that ended up speaking first.

"So what happened to Jules?"

J.J. closed his eyes and shook his head. "She got the worst of it. Apparently Evan was screwing around with other girls. Jules didn't know, but she got a reminder."

"Reminder?" Gabe asked. "After all of the embarrassment, what is there left?"

"My sister got gonorrhea." Tony sighed. "That was her reminder. Mom took her to the clinic and got everything taken care of. She better and all, but dude it sucks. My folks put her on house arrest for the rest of the summer. She lost her phone privileges and basically helped either my parents or around the house. The only time she got out was when we went anywhere."

"Well now you guys know about my summer. How the fuck was yours?"

The four of them turned and looked as Juliette stood a few steps away. She was visibly shaken and on the verge of tears. The four men were like deer caught in headlights. Tony and J.J. were stumbling over their words, trying to appeal to their sister. Gabe was the one that got up and moved closer to her.

"Why didn't you just tell me what was going on instead of getting angry at me?" Gabe whispered, placing his hand on her upper arm. She flinched away from Gabe. Gabe snorted a breath and placed his hands on her shoulders; making sure that she couldn't flinch away.

"Juliette, please look at me." Gabe spoke softly. She looked Gabe in the eyes; finding sadness and comfort. Juliette broke down into tears; Gabe pulling her into a loving embrace. He held her as she cried. Tony and J.J. moved closer to them.

"Sorry sissy," J.J. said. "Gabe was asking about you; he was concerned. We were trying to tell him what we could."

"We're sorry Jules." Tony chimed in. "We thought Gabe knew what was going on."

Juliette nodded, braving a smile. She hugged each of her brothers in turn. She returned to Gabe's side. Gabe rubbed her back as she stood with them.

"Jules; we're here for you." Gabe smiled at her. "When you're ready to talk; we'll listen."

Benny chuckled. "At least we know that what Shane said this morning was true."

The four of them looked at Benny in a mix of reactions. Tony looked murderous while Gabe looked at him with anger and complete surprise. Juliette started crying and took off up the steps of Degrassi. J.J. glared at Benny and took off after her sister.

"What the hell is your problem Cameron?" Gabe shouted. "You just listened to her story and you go ahead and call her the worst thing that Shane Milligan or Ogre Morgan could call any woman!" He placed a hand on Tony's shoulder and motioned that he would look for her. Tony nodded back.

"I'll deal with you later Cameron; you can count on it!" Gabe growled.

"Did you just call my only sister a fucking whore Cameron?" Tony snarled. "I thought that you had a few more brain cells up there than that Benny!"

Gabe didn't hear much more. He left Ben Cameron to his fate as he sprinted after Juliette and J.J. to help her in her time of need.

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><p><em>So that explains Juliette's moodiness in the last chapter. Yet did anyone else catch another annoyance for her? Hope you did. <em>

_A lot of the elements that came to light in this chapter will play later on with Gabe's side of the story; especially with what happens in the next few chapters. Also some of the names dropped in this chapter will come back into play later on too. _

_Speaking of name drops; Clancy "Ogre" Morgan is the only child of Bruce the Moose. Bruce the Moose was never given a last name, so I gave them the last name of Morgan. As for the Ogre nickname; keep in mind what Bruce looked like. Now imagine Bruce about thirty pounds heavier and looking uglier than sin. Thus Clancy "Ogre" Morgan was born. Most of the kids (and some teachers) call him by his nickname. He'll live up to it later on._

_Did you know that 10 Things I Hate About You is really based off of William Shakespearse's play Taming of the Shrew? Look it up, I'll wait..._

_Welcome back!_

_Many thanks to my faithful readers! You guys are the reason that I keep writing this story! _

_Special Thanks to CrashAgainstMySkin for the reviews! I appreciate it! Thank you so very very much._

_Next Time on "The Kids Are All Right": Unexpected help for the matter at hand. _


	6. When the Levee Breaks

_So sorry for the lateness of this; Life took over. Enjoy!_

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><p><strong>Chapter Six: <strong>When the Levee Breaks

Gabe flew up the stairs and through the doors. He glanced around the entryway looking for any trace of Juliette or J.J. He sighed as he realized that he lost track of the two of them. Tony entered a minute or two later after Gabe made it through the doors.

"Any ideas?" Tony asked. Gabe shook his head. "Well, leave it to dumbass to make a situation worse."

"Did you say anything to him?"

Tony shook his head. "I called him an asshole and told him to think before speaking again. I threatened to knock him out if he insulted my sister ever again."

"Stupid is as stupid does I guess." Gabe mumbled. Tony merely nodded.

Gabe noticed J.J. coming their way. The two friends moved towards him.

"Where is she Little Jay?" Gabe asked.

J.J. shook his head. "She tore off into the girls' bathroom. I would have gone in after her if it wasn't for Mr. Isaacs stopping me."

"Damn it!" Tony growled. "I'm going to…"

Gabe interrupted him. "Forget it Tone; the brain cells that boy has are left for basic functions. We need someone to bat for us."

Gabe looked around the hallway looking for someone that they could trust. He noticed his sister, Nikki and Alyson coming from the cafeteria. They noticed the three of them and smiled. Gabe motioned for the two brothers to wait there and went over to the three girls. He quickly explained what happened and asked her sister to see if she could help. Ronnie nodded and motioned for the two other girls to follow her. Gabe turned back to the brothers and nodded.

"What's going on?" J.J. asked.

"Ronnie said that she would do it." Gabe sighed. "She asked for us to wait here and they would meet up with us here."

"Why did the other two go with her?" Tony asked this time. "I don't think Jules knows either of them."

"It was something that Alyson and Nikki said that makes me trust them." Gabe replied. "They had said that they had been there and understood. They also said that they would help support Ronnie on this."

"Ronnie has experience in being called a whore?" Tony asked with a raised eyebrow.

"No, but she was picked on a lot at her other school. I'm sure that she can do something to help." Gabe shrugged. "Besides being a sympathetic ear is better than nothing."

"So we wait?" J.J. asked taking a seat on a nearby bench.

Gabe nodded. "Ronnie's doing me a solid. I'm covering her Saturday night for her."

Tony chuckled. "That was stupid."

"Not really." Gabe smiled. "Saturday's are the best tip days. She screwed herself."

"A double on a Saturday? That'll be rough." J.J. smirked.

"She's covering my Friday night. It's a fair trade."

The three took a seat and got comfortable. They didn't know how long this would take.

_Meanwhile…_

Ronnie opened the door to the girls' bathroom. She looked around and didn't notice Juliette anywhere. She motioned for the other two girls to follow her. Ronnie made a point to look under the other stalls to make sure that there was no one else in here. Alyson and Nikki looked around as well. When Nikki was fully through the door; Alyson opened up her bag and took out two items.

"What is that?" Nikki whispered.

Alyson smirked at the freshman. She held up a flathead screwdriver and a sign that read "Closed for Cleaning". She placed the sign on the outside of the door and closed it. She used the screwdriver to lock the door on the inside. She returned the screwdriver and dusted off her hands.

"Now we can talk to her without being bothered." Alyson whispered back.

"Where did you learn that?" Ronnie asked.

Alyson shrugged, crossing her arms over her chest. "When I needed privacy at my old school; I would find one of the girls' bathrooms and do that."

One of the stall doors slammed open; making Ronnie and Nikki nearly jump out of their skin. Alyson didn't jump but reacted by glancing in the general direction with a raised eyebrow.

"What the hell?" Juliette came out of stall fuming; her eyes looked red and puffy. "Can't someone use the bathroom without being stared at? How about not being whispered about?"

Juliette looked at Nikki and Ronnie in surprise. She had a partial smile on her face until looking at the third person behind them. Juliette's face lost the smile and she glared in Alyson's general direction.

"While I'm glad to see some of you," Juliette looked at Alyson with a hard glare. "I'm not really in the mood to talk."

Ronnie took a step forward, but Alyson placed a hand on her shoulder. Alyson stepped closer to Juliette. Juliette took a breath and made an attempt to stand taller. Alyson cocked her head to the side; looking directly at Juliette.

"Look Princess Hollywood," Alyson took a step closer to Juliette. "I know who you are. I'm pretty sure that you know who I am. We want to talk to you about what's going on." Alyson walked towards and past Juliette. Juliette watched her as she moved to the window at the back of the bathroom. "We can do this the easy way or the hard way; your choice."

"What's the difference in my choices?" Juliette asked warily.

Alyson climbed onto the ledge by the window. She opened the window and looked out it. She sat down on the ledge and started digging into her backpack. She placed a pack of cigarettes and a lighter down and continued to rummage in her bag.

"Well the easy way is going on right now." She took out a smoke and lit up. "We sit in here with all of the exits covered so you can't escape the problem." She blew the smoke out the open window. "The hard way is me duct taping you so you can't run or talk and then handcuffing you to one of the sinks while you listen."

"You don't have the…" Juliette stopped as Alyson held a roll of duct tape from one hand and a pair of handcuffs from the other. Juliette took a deep breath.

"Okay; we do the easy way."

"Shame." Alyson stated sarcastically, putting the items back into her bag. "Juliette, let's face facts; we don't know each other very well. The fact is that where we come from is a different world. You have your mom in the spotlight on everything that she does. I'm sure that they had a field day when you dad was arrested in New York. Be happy that your little story didn't get into the tabloids."

"How?" Juliette asked.

"It was in the tabloids, but not about you. They didn't paint a very pretty picture about the situation. They made up some story about your parents getting a divorce." Alyson blew smoke out the window. "The truth is that the news about what happened with you didn't get out; you and your little live-in boyfriend. Between that and you getting an STD would have made things worse."

Alyson put out the cigarette and tossed it out the window. "Drama sucks Hollywood; ask your mom about it sometimes. I not only saw what was printed about my parents, but about me." Alyson sighed as she down from the ledge; spraying air freshener in the air. "Little things like that didn't make me a lot of friends in my last school."

Ronnie sighed as well. "Juliette, you know my story. I was picked on for being the chubby girl until I was in sixth grade. When I spent that summer getting in shape; I knew that the kids I went to school with would find something to pick on me about." Ronnie wiped a tear away from her eye. "I got back to school and was either picked on for being brainy or beat up because I wouldn't do their homework for them. I was lucky; my saving grace was my brother."

"Your dreamy brother." Nikki sighed. Ronnie looked at her in surprise. "What?"

"Ew." Ronnie shuddered. "That's disturbing."

Alyson smiled. "No, she's onto something. He's kinda hot and very charming."

"He is nice on the eyes." Juliette chuckled. The three shared a moment by sighing at the same time. Ronnie twitched a bit.

"Could we stay on the subject?" Ronnie exclaimed.

"I think what Ronnie is trying to say," Nikki focused on Juliette. "Is that no matter what happened, there is a guy out there that sent us in here to help you when he couldn't be. I don't know about you girls, but we've had drama in our pasts and we came here to make a change." Nikki sighed. "I don't have many friends right now and at this moment; I consider the three of you ladies friends. Friends tend to stick together and help each other out."

Ronnie smiled and nodded. "We're here for each other. You've had a rough summer and I think us helping each other in our worst times would be the right thing to do. Don't let some dumb as a brick jock and a stoner bother you. While words suck; it's overcoming those words and actions that makes you a better person."

Alyson placed an arm around Juliette's shoulder. "Let's face it; we're misfits in this drama that is high school. I think the four of us and those three boys out there waiting for us would give their right arm to help each other."

"We'll help you get through this." Ronnie moved closer to Juliette and Alyson. "You said to me once that you considered me a little sister. I hope you still think of me that way."

"Of course!" Juliette exclaimed.

"Good, because I just met Nikki today and I consider her a sister." Ronnie smiled. "I just spent time with Alyson and while she's a little rough around the edges; she's sister material."

"Look." Alyson said. "I'm not the first person that others would trust. Hell, I have a hard time trusting others. Right now; I feel that I could trust the three of you. I would be willing to give Tony and J.J. a chance as well."

The four shared a laugh. When they checked on Juliette and made sure she was okay, they unlocked the door, took the sign down and met up with the boys and spent the last few minutes of lunch looking forward to a brighter day.

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><p><em>With this chapter; this is the final part of the Mason siblings being together. Don't get me wrong: they will be together in the future chapters and they will have moments like we've had here. I'm now planning on having them on their own separate stories. The next part will star Gabe; Ronnie will follow in the story after that and so on.<br>_

_As we end this part; it's interesting that it ends on a happier note. Of course we know that the peace rarely lasts on Degrassi. So shall this too pass in the following chapters to come.  
><em>

_I thank you guys for being so patient with me on the updates. I've had a few changes with my work schedule and I'm still working on the story on my days off. I'll be posting as soon as I can from here on out. All I ask is that you be patient with me on this.  
><em>

_Thank you again to my readers! Continue to keep me inspired.  
><em>

_**Next Chapter: **Friendships move some apart and others closer...  
><em>


	7. One Step Closer

_Thank you my dear readers for your over-abundant patience with my work. Here's the story:_

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><p><strong>Chapter Seven: <strong>One Step Closer

That lunch ended with seven people becoming friends. That first week was spent getting to know each other; as well as other people that were on the outside of the main circle. They spent time adjusting to classes and outside activities. August had ended and the weather had began to change. September had brought cooler temps to Degrassi; causing the green in the leaves to turn the most beautiful colors in the world.

The friends would adjust to the crazy schedules that each would face . Ronnie would spend a lot of time with Nikki; the two girls ended up being the best of friends. The two girls would hang out with Nikki's cousins, Edgar and Elizabeth; as well as Emily Cameron and Rosalyn Brooks. They were always shadowed with J.J. Hogart and all of the niners were good friends.

Gabe on the other hand was having a bit of a harder time. While his academics were going well, he had very few friends to hang out with. Juliette and he had spoken briefly after the bathroom incident, but for the most part she avoided him. They were friendly in classes and even the few times outside of classes they had run into each other. She just avoided him and decided to start dating again. Tony was spending more and more time at Jay's garage and hanging out with Benny Cameron again. Gabe had spent most of that time with Alyson or by himself. The two of them had most of the same classes together and had never really run out of things to talk about. If they had, it was a comfortable silence.

Alyson was sitting on one of the benches outside the gymnasium waiting for her friend on a beautiful Friday afternoon. She had a notebook in front of her and was writing furiously. She heard the doors open up and she noticed that Gabe was walking out with Jimmy Brooks Jr. and Shane Milligan. She slowly put her notebook away and saw the look on Gabe's face. She sighed sadly, knowing that it didn't go well. She listened as they talked.

"Sorry bro," Jimmy placed a hand on his back. "You really did a hell of a lot better than last year."

Shane chuckled. "At least you were able to hit the net this time."

"Ha ha guys; real funny."

"Gabe," Jimmy looked at him. "It's not your fault that everyone from last year tried to join this year. At least Coach Drew was honest about your try out."

"It's cool Jimmy." Gabe shot him a weak smile. "There's always next year."

Jimmy nodded. "That's the spirit. I'll see you guys later, gotta get back in there before Coach has my head." With that, Jimmy went back up the stairs and into the gym. Gabe sighed and turned to Shane.

"I guess I'll see you later." Gabe took a few steps closer to where Alyson was sitting when Shane spoke up.

"Look Gabe, you and I aren't the best of friends."

Gabe turned and gave Shane a sarcastic look.

"There's no reason to be a dick." Shane said, shaking his head. "Anyway, my dad said that we could use a few more guys for the wrestling team. We lost most of them last year to graduating. You're about the right build for it."

"Would I have to wear that singlet uniform?"

"Yeah Gabe, it's a given." Shane looked at Gabe as if he grown horns out of his head.

Gabe shrugged. "I don't see why not."

Shane smiled. "Alright, I'll talk to dad and find out when the tryouts will be." Shane turned back towards the gym when Gabe stopped him this time.

"Why are you helping me out? I thought you hate me?"

"Why are you sounding like a chick?" Shane chuckled. He turned back to Gabe.

"I'm being serious Shane."

Shane rolled his eyes and sighed. "Alright the truth is I don't hate you. You're okay in my book Mason."

"Then why give me grief about…" Gabe stopped when Shane put his hand up.

"You're cool man and you can be yourself." Shane shook his head. "Mostly everyone likes you; students, teachers and parents. You play sports; you're a good student; you do what you want and take your chances. You're yourself and I'm cool with that."

"So the insults?"

Shane smirked. "I do the insults because I'm a dick. I have no issue with you personally. I had an issue with who you hung out."

"You're talking about the Hogarts?"

"J.J.'s okay; he grows on you." Shane smiled. "Tony and Juliette? They suck. Tony's a punk and a criminal. Juliette's a drama queen. They bring people down."

Gabe looked at Shane. He could understand what he was saying. He was still friends with them, but not hanging out all the time; he did realize that there was some truth in Shane's words.

"What's Benny's deal then?"

"Simple; I don't like people that abuse drugs." Shane clearly stated. "Ask me about my mom sometime." Shane started to turn around when he noticed Alyson. "Keep him honest there Alyson. He's a good guy."

"Thanks Shane." Gabe smiled. Shane nodded and walked back into the gym. Alyson walked up to Gabe and nudged him a bit. Gabe came out of his thoughts and smiled at Alyson. She smiled back at him. They started walking down the hall to the exit.

"I take it basketball didn't go too well?" Alyson asked, handing him a bottle of water.

Gabe smiled and thanked her. "It went okay. Most of last year's team tried out and were way better than I was."

Alyson nodded. She looked at Gabe. "You thinking about Shane's offer?"

Gabe chuckled a bit. "Could you see me wearing the singlet and that headgear?"

Alyson stopped for a moment. Gabe took a few steps before realizing that Alyson wasn't beside him. He looked at her in confusion.

"Alyson?"

She came out of her thoughts and looked at Gabe. "Huh?"

Gabe shook his head. "I said could you see me in a singlet wrestling?"

Alyson shrugged. "Yeah I actually could. Didn't you take gymnastics?"

Gabe smiled. "Yeah I did. Degrassi doesn't offer a men's team, so I've kind of stopped going when I came here. I still do a lot of the exercises in the morning."

"Why not give it a try? What's the worst that happens?"

"I don't get on the team." Gabe frowned.

Alyson put her hand on his shoulder. "Then we'll find something else to do."

"Thanks Alyson." Gabe pulled her into a hug. "You really know how to make me feel better about a bad situation."

Alyson blushed as she spoke. "It wasn't anything. We're friends; it's what friends do." She broke from the hug and dug into her bag, taking out her phone. "Let me talk to the parentals and see if you can come over for dinner."

"I couldn't intrude on family dinner. Isn't that when you guys catch up?"

Alyson rolled her eyes. "My parents don't mind if I were to bring a guest. Besides, what kind of loser has dinner alone?"

Gabe raised an eyebrow. "Me?"

Alyson rolled her eyes as she called her parents. Gabe checked his messages from his family. He ended up replying to his sister and mom first and telling them the bad news. He called the restaurant to talk to his dad.

"Spinner's Place; this is Doug. How can I help you today?"

"Doug its Gabe. Could you get me to my dad?"

Doug transferred the call to the kitchen.

"Kitchen; this is Spinner."

"Hey dad."

"Hey kid!" Spinner sounded upbeat. "So how did it go?"

Gabe explained what had happened and mentioned about his other option in another month or so. He also let him know of his dinner plans. Spinner was supportive about what his son wanted to do. They ended the conversation after a few moments; Spinner reminding him of his curfew. Gabe hung up the phone and turned to Alyson.

"Are we good?"

Alyson nodded. "Yup; mom was okay with you coming over. Dad was okay with it too."

Gabe smiled. "Thank you Alyson. I really mean it."

"Sure thing." Alyson smiled back. "Let's go!"

"Do you mind if I head back to my place? I need a shower."

Alyson nodded and the two headed to Gabe's home.

_A short time later…_

The two friends walked down the street to the Mason residence. They had spent most of the time going through the rest of the messages from Ronnie and the rest of her friends. Most of the messages were short and wished him well. They had to smile to J.J.'s commentary about him trying out for wrestling as well. Gabe had to explain to Alyson that Nikki had always sent him video messages. She found it odd, but accepted that the girl was just being friendly. He explained that besides herself; Nikki and Ronnie were always able to cheer him up. It was the way that they cared.

They reached the door and Gabe let Alyson go in first; he followed behind her and locked the door. She looked around and noticed that his home was similar to hers in layout, but decorated with family mementos and photos. Alyson had to smile that how similar the two of them were in upbringing. Family was just as important to her family as it was to them.

"It's not much." Gabe said, slipping his shoes off in the entryway. "It's home."

"It's nice. It's a lot like my home." Alyson turned to him as she spoke. "So anywhere I can change?"

"Yeah." Gabe motioned for her to follow him. They headed up the stairs.

"So this is Ronnie's room." He pointed to the door on his left. "Her room connects to the bathroom. My room is the first door on the right. The guest room is right next to mine."

"What's the last room down there?" Alyson pointed to the last remaining door.

Gabe smiled. "Mom and Dad got tired of Ronnie and me fighting over the family room television downstairs. So about six or seven years ago they made a room for us to either watch the tube, play video games or do homework. It's our own little lounge."

Alyson smiled and headed towards the lounge. "That's cool. Do you guys entertain friends up here?"

Gabe spoke louder as he went into his room. "Sometimes, but most of the time we use it when we can." He headed to the linen closet and took out a towel. "Go ahead and make yourself comfortable. I'll be out in a few minutes." With that; Gabe jumped in the shower.

Alyson looked around the lounge for a few moments. She was impressed. She checked out the movies and game collection that were in the tall bookshelves. She could pick out each person's taste in movies and games. Alyson moved to the guest room and peeked in. She continued on to Gabe's room and opened the door.

It wasn't a big room with the dresser and full size bed; it was smaller than her room at home. The walls were littered with posters of bands, favorite actors and video game characters. There was a small desk with his laptop on it and school bag in the chair. He had a small bookshelf with some comic books and awards on it. Alyson smiled as she noticed pictures of Ronnie and her brother with other niners on the shelves.

She tossed her bag and purse onto his bed and took off her Degrassi polo and slacks. She took out an urban camo skirt and put it on. She grabbed a black hoodie out of the bag and was about to put it on when she noticed two frames on the nightstand near the bed. The first one was of his family at one of those formal picture studios. The second one made her heart skip a beat as she picked it up.

The picture was of Gabe and her that Nikki had taken just a few weeks ago. Gabe was standing behind her and had wrapped an arm around her chest. She had grabbed his arm with her hands; they were both smiling. She was shocked that this picture was the exact same picture that she had on her nightstand.

"How?" Alyson said out loud to herself. "What are the odds?"

"What are the odds of what?"

Alyson didn't have time to react. She quickly put the picture down on the nightstand and grabbed the hoodie. She didn't have time to cover herself as Gabe walked right in. He looked right at her with wide eyes. His cheeks turned a shade of pink as he walked back out the door into the hallway.

Alyson quickly put her hoodie on and zipped it up. She took a couple of breaths, picked up her things and walked out in the hallway. Gabe was standing in the hallway with back towards her; dressed from the waist down. She placed a hand on his shoulder. He jumped and turned to her.

"Alyson I'm so sorry…" She put a finger up to her lips to silence him.

"I'm a nosey person. I was curious to what your room looked like. I should have said something, but I wasn't sure that you'd okay it. I went in to look around and got dressed in there. It was my fault."

Gabe scoffed. "No it's my fault. I just didn't think you'd be in here. I figured that you'd change in the lounge or guest room. I barged into my room…"

"…because it's your room." Alyson finished for him. "Yes you got to see me in my upper glory Gabriel. I'm a girl; I have boobs. You saw my boobs in a lacy red bra; girls like to feel sexy sometimes. You caught me on a sexy day."

"Girls like to have sexy days?" Gabe asked with a smirk.

Alyson rolled her eyes. "Yes we do; it's a girl thing." She moved towards the bathroom. "If you're done in there, I need to go."

Gabe nodded as the door closed. He wiped a light covering of sweat from his forehead. He took a deep breath and headed towards his room. The bathroom door opened a crack, causing Gabe to turn around. Alyson stuck her head in the opening and grinned.

"Just for your information Gabriel; here are two things for you. One; I've seen you in your boxers."

Gabe eyes went wide. He had forgotten the impromptu swimming at Nikki's a month ago. He swallowed and waited for the other foot to drop.

"The number two is more for me than you, but my top matches the bottom." With that, Alyson closed the door.

Gabe walked into his room and closed the door. As he continued to change into clean clothes he realized that his friend was evil. It's not nice to torture a guy that way.

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><p><em>Hope you enjoyed the chapter. As if you really couldn't tell; there seems to be a bit of sexual tension between Alyson and Gabe. If you think things will play out here in the next chapter or so; then you would be correct. Also I decided to bring in Jimmy Brooks Jr. and Shane Milligan into the story. I will be bringing them into Gabe's side of the story as time goes on. Don't worry; the characters that I've introduced in the past chapters will return. Expect big things from the Hogarts before the Christmas part of the story. <em>

_I finally got caught up with the current season of Degrassi. Many thanks to DirecTV for taking away TeenNick for over a week and Viacom for being greedy bastards. You had to screw things up for your faithful watchers; we really appreciated it. One note in my story that is different is that the students in my timeline is that they're still in the uniforms. The quick background is that the schoolboard decided to keep the polos and I.D. cards, but Principal Simpson let the students add their own flair to the rest of the uniforms. Easy justification for what's happening for this current season. Plus; I don't know about you, but I'd like my own Degrassi polo or Degrassi clothing. I think it would be cool. _

_Coming up: Gabe in the Lion's Den. He also gets to meet the parents and grandparents. _

_Stay Tuned!_


	8. Something to Believe In

_So here is the latest chapter. Notes on the bottom as usual._

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><p><strong>Chapter Eight: <strong>Something to Believe In

The walk to the Manning residence wasn't a long trip. Gabe realized not too long ago that Alyson lived closer to the school than he did. The conversation had returned as normal; but both parties realized that things had changed, if ever so slightly. Gabe stopped just short of the stoop as Alyson continued to the door. She stopped and turned to him.

"You okay?"

Gabe took a deep breath. "Your dad hates me."

Alyson raised an eyebrow. She had noticed that her father had given Gabe a harder time in class. Gabe would work harder in order to appease to their teacher.

"Dad doesn't hate you."

"Okay; maybe a very strong dislike?"

"Gabriel." Alyson put her hand on his shoulder. "My dad doesn't hate you. I'm sure there's no animosity towards you. Mom likes you enough."

Gabe scoffed. "I've actually talked to your mom. Your dad and I talk during music class and it's usually just questions and answers. Your mom seems to like me."

Alyson smiled and nodded. "She told me that you're better than the last guy that I brought home for dinner."

This caused Gabe to smile. They turned to see an older gentleman at the door. Alyson eyes lit up with good humor. She squealed a bit as she hugged the man.

"Papa Joe! It's so good to see you! Are you and Nana Caitlin staying for dinner?"

Joey Jeremiah smiled to his granddaughter. "You bet! I was just going to call Angie and see if she was coming to join us." He looked and smiled at Gabe. "Now who is this young gentleman?"

Alyson pulled Joey towards Gabe. "Papa; this is Gabriel Mason, my best friend."

Joey looked at Gabe for a moment and smiled at him. "How's Spinner doing these days?"

"He's good sir. He's been keeping busy with the restaurant."

Joey laughed. "He's a good man. He really turned himself around after high school." Joey sighed and smiled at the two of them. "Did you know that I sold him his first car?"

Gabe had to laugh this time. "Did you know that he still drives that same car back and forth to work sir?"

Joey smiled. "That doesn't surprise me. My daughter took over the business a few years ago and turned Jeremiah Motors into one of the biggest dealerships in Toronto."

"You still own the place Papa Joe?" Alyson asked.

"Until I can't get out of bed in the morning." Joey smiled to the two kids, taking out his cellphone. "I'll call Angie and see what's taking her so long."

Alyson motioned for Gabe to follow her inside. They walked in the door and took their shoes off and placed them out of the way. Gabe had to smile at the warmness of the home. It was just like his home, only bigger.

"There's my granddaughter!" Caitlin Jeremiah called over to her. "Give your Nana a hug and bring that cute boy with you!"

Gabe blushed at the comment as Alyson took his hand and the two walked over to Caitlin. Alyson hugged her grandmother and they laughed. Ellie Manning walked over and hugged her daughter. Alyson stood by her mother as her grandmother walked up to Gabe.

"Nana; this is Gabriel Mason, my best friend. Mom, you remember Gabe?"

"It's nice to meet you Gabriel." Caitlin smiled, turning to Alyson. "He's definitely cuter than that Thomas boy that I met last year."

"Nana…"

Gabe smiled; blushing slightly. "It's nice to meet you Mrs. Jeremiah. It's also good to see you again Mrs. Manning. Thank you for having me over for dinner tonight."

Ellie Manning smiled at Gabe. "After what Ally told me about you being on your own tonight, I couldn't allow that. You're always welcome here."

Caitlin turned and looked at Gabe with concern. "Is there something I'm missing here?"

Gabe cleared his throat. "It's not as bad as Mrs. Manning had put it. My dad is the head chef and owner of Spinner's place; he's running the kitchen tonight. My mom and little sister are having a girls' day today."

Alyson looked over at Caitlin. "Nana, I invited Gabe to join us. He had a long day and basketball tryouts didn't go very well." Alyson sighed. "I was looking out for my friend, that's all."

"I'm sorry that you didn't make the team Gabe. " Ellie offered a sympathetic look.

Gabe smirked. "There were ten guys better than me; it was bound to happen."

Ellie nodded. "There are always other things to do at school." She turned to her daughter. "Alyson; would you please help me in the kitchen?"

Alyson looked at her mother embarrassed. "Mom…"

Gabe spoke up. "I'll do it."

The three women looked at Gabe with surprise.

"I really don't mind. I'm pretty good in a kitchen."

"Gabriel you don't have to…" Ellie started but Caitlin interrupted.

"Ellie; let the boy help. I'm curious to see what he can pull off."

Gabe smiled. "Thank you Mrs. Jeremiah."

Ellie looked at him. "Can you cut up some onions and prep some lettuce? Craig's on the grill making the burgers and dogs."

Gabe smiled and walked over to the island; prepping the toppings for the meal. Alyson joined over and helped Gabe work; getting things for ready and making a few other things. Ellie and Caitlin watched the two work together. Caitlin nudged Ellie to get her attention. Ellie turned to Caitlin.

"Remind you of any other team you know?"

Ellie smiled. "It brings back some memories. I remember a troubled redhead working with her mentor."

"You forgot another student that was honored to work with her mentor."

Ellie rolled her eyes. "Thank you for bringing Claire up in my home. That girl is a hard worker, but drives me up a wall."

The two women turned back and watched Gabe making some different sauces with Alyson helping him. The two teenagers laughed and made jokes while working. At one point; Alyson had grabbed a dill pickle and a spatula. She flipped the pickle in the air. Ellie was about to say something, but watched as Gabe dove behind the island and caught it in his mouth. He stood up and smiled; causing Alyson to laugh and applaud.

Caitlin smiled. "He's good for her."

Ellie nodded as she sighed. "I think it's a two way street. I've seen the two of them like this. It's like this with them all of the time." Ellie smiled. "Did you know that he walks her home almost all of the time?"

Caitlin turned and looked at her protégé in surprise.

"When Gabriel found out that they lived so close, he always made it a point to walk her home. I would come home sometimes and find the two of them sitting on the stoop just talking. They would laugh or would sing; something to pass the time. Sometimes Gabriel's little sister Veronica or other students would be with them and they would be having a great time. It's the times that it is just the two of them, like now." Ellie sighed and smiled. "They're practically inseparable and I'm not sure what caused the two of them to become so close."

Caitlin nodded at this. While not knowing the whole story; she was greatly happy to see her granddaughter happy again. Whatever this young man had done in a sign of friendship; had cemented a bond to last a lifetime.

_About the same time in the backyard…_

Craig Manning was at the grill flipping a couple of burgers. He placed the spatula down on the right side resting with the barbeque tools. He took the beer from the railing behind him and took a sip. He took a deep breath and returned to the grill. This got the attention of one of the four people in the backyard.

"What's going on Craig?"

Craig looked up and smiled at one of his closest friends. "Nothing Marco; I swear."

"Yeah right." Marco gave Craig a look. "You've been sighing for the last hour or so."

"Does this have to do with a certain daughter of yours?" Dylan Michalchuck smiled as he put an arm around Marco's shoulders.

"Craig, Gabriel is a good guy." Marco nodded. "From what El said was that he needed a place to hang out for a while. I don't think he would harm a hair on her head."

"From what I've heard from Dylan and Marco," Paige Michalchuck stated, taking a sip from her beer. "Is that Spinner's son isn't anything like his father at this age."

"Maybe's he gay?" Dylan asked.

Paige glared at her brother. "Yeah like Spinner would allow that."

Marco took a drink. "Paige; he's straight. Most gays can pick each other out in a crowd."

Craig looked at Marco puzzled. "Huh?"

"We have gaydar Craig." Dylan laughed. "It's pretty instinctual for us."

Craig shook his head. "I teach the boy as well Marco. He's nothing like Spin was at Degrassi. He's almost the complete opposite."

"Then what's the problem?" Paige asked.

"That's the thing," Craig stated as he poked at the cooking meat. "I can't find a single thing wrong with him. He's a good student, he's polite most of the time and he respects his teachers and really applies himself."

"Then I figured it out." Paige smiled at the three men. "You're not happy with him because he hangs out with your little girl."

Craig scoffed at Paige. "Yeah that's the problem. You're crazy!" He stated to the group with veiled sarcasm. The other three looked at each other and nodded.

"Craig…" Dylan started to speak but Craig held his hand up to stop him.

"That is the problem; they hang out all the time. He barely hangs out with those other friends of his."

"Craig, have you had the honor of meeting the other friends?" Marco asked, in which Craig shook his head. "Tony is too much like Jay, Benny is too much like Sean when he first started hanging out with Jay."

"What about Juliette?" Paige asked.

Marco turned to his friend. "She's not as bad, but she can be really dramatic."

"So she's like Manny back then?" Paige smiled.

Marco rolled his eyes. This caused Dylan to laugh. Craig smiled a bit.

"She's not totally wrong Marco." Craig took another swig from the bottle. "Manny wasn't too bad. Juliette does have her moments…"

The four heard the back door open up. Alyson was coming out with Gabriel a few steps behind. She walked over to her dad and gave him a hug.

"Hi Dad. Thanks for letting Gabe join us for dinner."

Craig smiled; turning his attention to Gabe. Gabe had his hand out with all sincerity on his face. Craig shook his hand and smiled at him.

"Thank you again Mr. Manning. I really appreciate this."

Craig nodded and let go of Gabriel's hand. Alyson introduced Gabriel to the rest of the adults in the backyard. Craig smiled inwardly as Gabe knew a bit about Paige and her fashion line. He paid attention to the fact that he knew Marco was gay, but was surprised that his boyfriend was one of the star players of the Toronto Maple Leafs. They laughed for a moment or two; Gabe merely smiling, looking slightly embarrassed. Alyson slowly ushered Gabe back inside and left the four outside. Joey Jeremiah walked out a few moments later.

"Nice kid that Gabriel." Joey smiled. "He's a wonder in the kitchen."

Craig gave Joey a look. "What do you mean?"

"Well according to Caitlin; he prepped all of the toppings for the burgers and dogs. He also made a couple of dips and sauces for everyone as well."

The three friends on the picnic table looked at each other and headed in to check things out. Craig was left manning the grill as Joey watched.

"Something wrong Craig?"

Craig shook his head. Joey placed a hand on Craig's shoulder.

"Craig; I know that you're not looking forward to Alyson dating again. Thomas was a real scumbag. She didn't know what was going to happen."

Craig sighed. "I just don't want my little girl to get hurt again."

"I know how you feel in a sense." Joey sighed as well. "Even when Angie started dating, I have to admit that I was afraid."

Craig turned and looked at Joey. "So what happened?"

"I knew that I would have to let go. She's a big girl and I would be there to help pick up the pieces if I had to." Joey looked Craig in the eyes. "She's going to date again Craig. Wouldn't you like her to date someone that has her best interests in mind?"

Craig nodded. "I would. I want someone to take care of her."

"Then Gabe seems to be this guy." Joey shrugged. "You said it yourself that they spend time together and he treats her well?"

Craig nodded again. "He treats her like a princess. No, more like a queen. Joey; he treats her as an equal."

"Then don't be surprised if they end up dating some day."

Craig sighed. The back door opened and both men turned towards the door. Gabe came out and smiled at the two men.

"Sorry but Mrs. Manning was wondering where the food was and I volunteered to find out." Gabe looked nervous as he stood there. Joey grabbed the meat and headed in with the plate. He smiled as he left the two outside.

"Gabriel, please take a seat at the picnic table." Craig stated. Gabe nodded and took a seat. Craig sighed as he took a seat at the edge of the deck.

"This isn't going to be easy for me Gabe." Craig took a drink. "You have to understand that yes I'm uncomfortable with all of the time that you spend with Alyson."

Gabe nodded as Craig continued. "I don't know your true intentions. If you would give me a little insight…"

Gabe raised his hand and Craig motioned for him to speak. "Mr. Manning do you know what Straight Edge is?"

Craig nodded. "It's something having to do with not doing drugs or drinking."

Gabe nodded. "It's a lifestyle. I abstain from doing or abusing drugs, alcohol, smoking or promiscuous relations."

"Not the words that I want to hear Mr. Mason."

Gabe cleared his throat. "That's not my intention for your daughter. Do I like her? Yes sir, I do. She's a great best friend. Hell, she's a better friend than the girl that I've known all my life. Alyson actually listens to my griping and I listen to hers." Gabe sighed. "Would I like to take the next step and date her? Yes I would. I'm not about to have my way with her and be done with her. I respect that she has her life to live and I want to add to that happiness."

Craig looked at him in surprise and with a bit of respect. "You know that my daughter smokes and you're okay with it?"

Gabe sighed. "I know that she does. While I don't personally like it; I'm not going to force her to stop. If she wants to; she will."

"Do you intend to have relations with her?"

Gabe was shocked at the bluntness of the question. "If it's any concern; I'm the virgin in this hypothetical relationship. She told me that she wasn't, but didn't say why. I'm not in a rush to lose my virginity." He took a deep breath. "If it happens; I will treat her with respect."

Craig scratched his chin. "You're being honest with me?"

Gabe nodded. "If you pardon what I'm about to say; I've learned not to bullshit anyone." Craig chuckled a little bit as Gabe continued. "You can tie me up to a lie detector or give me a shot of sodium penethal. I would tell you the same thing under close scrutiny of the courts or powers-that-be."

Craig raised an eyebrow. "You're tough."

Gabe chuckled. "I learned at a very young age not to pull the wool over my parents' eyes. I guess that would apply to any adult." Gabe cleared his throat. "May I ask you something other than this question?"

"Only one?" Craig asked with a smile.

Gabe smiled and nodded. "Would you have an issue with me asking your daughter out on a date in the near future?"

Craig looked at the young man in front of him. He pondered this question; knowing that Gabe wouldn't intentionally hurt his daughter. He had seen how they acted at school or even on the front porch when he would come home. He saw that he had the utmost respect for him and his family; especially his daughter. Craig took the words from his father figure and realized that sometimes children have to learn to fly. Craig chuckled and shook his head as he looked up to Gabe.

"If you treat her like a woman and have her back before curfew on a weekend; you have my okay. I'm going to have to get used to my little girl is dating."

"I will make it a point not to cross any of you. I've heard the story that Ms. Michalchuck crashed my dad's car into a guy's car out of spite."

Craig laughed. "You're alright Gabe. It's going to take me some time that my spitfire of a daughter is going out with a good guy."

Gabe grinned from ear to ear. He stood up and walked over to Craig; extending his hand to him. Craig shook the young man's hand and smiled. The handshake ended and Craig ushered Gabe into the house. His hand was on Gabe's back and the two men smiled.

"So Joey told me that you made some sauces. Would you care to share what you made?"

* * *

><p><em>So many apologies for the lateness of this update. Unfortunately; life took over. With that and getting shipped to midnights at work has made time to write almost non-existant. I actually have barely started Veronica's side of the story. I was almost considering putting this story on hiatus for a while, but I have some downtime at work. Maybe I'll make it a point when I work by myself to continue this story. <em>

_The numbers don't lie; I still have people reading this story. I also have others reading my other fictions. Apparently I'm doing good. Many thanks to my readers. Thanks to those that are patiently waiting for this chapter as well. _

_On to the notes: _

_CrashAgainstMySkin-Thank you for your continued reading. Patience is a virtue. It's coming; just wait for it. _

_Pocksuppet-Thank you for the comment. I've always been a fan of Spane/Jinner. I have nothing against Emma, but she should be with Sean. Plain and simple. As for Toby; he's a science teacher in my version of the futureverse. Liberty is also in this universe. Sadly; the two characters will probably not show up unless for a few lines here and there. I'm barely pushing the parents in the story (with the exception of Spinner and Jane and this chapter). _

_So I bring up a question to my readers: What challenges would you like to see Veronica deal with? Gabe's part of the story is pretty much set for the year (when I make it that far). Keep in mind that Gabe and Veronica are safe from elimination. I'd like to hear from my readers._

_Coming up: Will they or Won't They? _


	9. She Will Be Loved

_For those that have been patient; the last part of Gabe's story (for now)_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Nine: <strong>She Will Be Loved

Dinner was spent with everyone having a great time. Everyone was impressed with the sauces that Gabriel had created (the wasabi mayonnaise being the biggest hit) and all were surprised on how they complimented the burgers and hot dogs. Gabe, Angie and Alyson had volunteered to clean up the kitchen while the adults had sat in the living room and talked. The three had cleaned up the kitchen in a short amount of time. Gabe had left to throw out the trash; causing Angie to take advantage of the situation.

"You've got yourself one considerate guy there."

Alyson sighed. "I wish he was mine."

Angie looked at her cousin in surprise. "You two aren't dating? What's wrong with him?"

Alyson gave Angie an angry look. "Why is he the problem? Did you ever think that I'm the problem?" Alyson sighed. "Sorry; I'm just trying to figure out what happened today."

Angie gave Alyson a worried look. Alyson motioned for the front door. She let her parents know where they were going if Gabe came back in. They closed the front door and Alyson quickly explained what had happened at the Mason homestead. She took a deep breath and looked at her cousin for an answer. Angie pondered this and took out her cigarette case. Alyson quickly took one and lit up as Angie did.

"So what do you think?" Alyson said after a drag.

"I think both of you are the problem." Alyson shot daggers at her, but Angie continued. "You have the same picture that he does. I think that the two of you should talk about this."

"Talk about it?" Alyson grumbled. "Do you realize how hard it is to do that?"

Angie rolled her eyes. "You've seen in him in his boxers. He's seen you in a lacy bra and skirt." She inhaled smoke from the cigarette. "You two have some kind of feelings for each other; you two are should talk about it."

"The direct approach?" Alyson shrugged. "That's the best answer in all of your infinite wisdom can offer me?"

"Yep."

The door opened and Gabe came out. "Am I interrupting something?"

"Nope, we're good." Angie smiled at him.

"Are you leaving Gabe?" Alyson asked.

Gabe nodded. "Yeah, I have to work a double tomorrow; so I'll have to be in at eight." He turned to Angie. "It was nice to meet you."

Angie pulled him into a hug. "Yes we're a hugging family and we're looking forward to seeing you again. Don't be a stranger." With that, Angie put out her smoke and walked inside. Alyson placed hers on the railing and asked Gabe to wait for her.

Alyson was back outside in a minute. "Do you have a few minutes?"

Gabe looked at Alyson with a concerned look on his face. "Yeah…"

Alyson didn't say a word, but she took Gabe's hand and the two of them walked across the street. They ended up in a small park that had some picnic tables, some swings and other play equipment. Alyson led Gabe to a covered picnic area and she took a seat on the picnic table. She took a drag from her cigarette, her hands shaking. Gabe looked at her with worry on his face.

"Ally what's the matter? I've never seen you like this." He sat down next to her; placing an arm around her. Alyson started to tear up. She wiped the forming tears away furiously with her hoodie sleeves. Gabe gently pulled her hands away.

"Look at me Ally; please?" She turned her towards him; crossing her legs on the picnic table. "Ally, it's me. You can tell me anything."

"I'm not sure that I can." Alyson whispered, looking at her shaking hands. "Not this."

Gabe smirked at her. "Is this about earlier? About what happened in my room?"

Alyson looked up at him. A tear rolled down her cheek. Gabe reached out slowly and wiped it away with his thumb. She closed her eyes and placed her hand on his.

"How do you know what I'm thinking?"

"I tend to pay attention and yes I think we need to talk."

Alyson took a drag and started. "Why did you walk out? Do I disgust you?"

Gabe jaw dropped. "Are you kidding?! You're one of, if not the most gorgeous girl at Degrassi. I think you're absolutely stunning."

"But why…?"

Gabe interrupted her. "I was partially embarrassed because I've never had a half naked woman in my room that I wasn't related to. The other part was me thinking here is this gorgeous girl in my room and there is no one home. It took everything in my power to not toss you on my bed and seriously make out with you."

"Why didn't you?"

Gabe looked down. "I'm pretty inexperienced and I didn't want to ruin a good thing…"

Alyson interrupted in an angry tone of voice. "Ruin a good thing?! I've been giving you signals for weeks now! I've been wanting to kiss you every chance that I could take! So I'm one of your buddies? Are you keeping me around as a replacement for that whore Hogart or am I just a practice girlfriend that you can do what you want with? Well you can go fu…"

Alyson didn't get to finish her rant. Gabe had reached over and placed a kiss of burning passion on her lips. They both felt that feeling that they had for each other. They exchanged kisses for several moments until Gabe broke away. The separating of lips made a significant pop. Alyson had to try to catch her breath.

"What I was trying to say before someone interrupted me; was that I didn't want to ruin a good thing until I really knew what I felt about you. It was between that and asking your mom and dad for permission for me to ask you to be my girlfriend. You want to talk about facing a firing squad…"

"Which was worse?" Alyson got out after a moment.

"Your mom actually." Gabe smiled. "Your dad was straight and to the point. With your mom being the best news anchor in all of Canada; she asked all of the questions with everyone there. That was tough."

Alyson giggled. "Yeah; she's the best." Alyson moved closer to Gabe, placing her head on his shoulder. "I'm so sorry about the outburst."

"It's forgotten." Gabe wrapper his arm around her. "I knew when I started liking you that I was looking at you. I wasn't looking at her multi-platinum recording artist of a father or award-winning journalist of a mother. I was looking at a gorgeous woman with wisdom of a couple of lifetimes, the heart of poet and soul of an angel."

"Charmer." Alyson bumped him, causing him to laugh. "Thank you for the kind words."

"It's the truth; well the way I see it."

"Okay." Alyson sighed. "So are we official?"

"Definitely. Alyson Lee; will you be my girlfriend?"

"Like you have to ask? My answer is yes."

"Then I have no problem being your boyfriend." Gabe and Alyson kissed. Gabe looked at his watch and broke the kiss.

"Sorry angel, but I have to go. It's nine and I need to get some sleep." Gabe got up and offered his hand to Alyson. "I just have one request."

She took his hand as she hopped off the picnic table. "Anything."

Gabe sighed this time. "Let's take our time with us being girlfriend and boyfriend. I was serious when I said I'm pretty inexperienced in the dating game."

Alyson nodded. "I couldn't disagree with you. No rush for anything."

The two walked back to the Manning home, where they exchange a few more kisses. Alyson walked in and enjoyed the rest of the evening with her family. When the relatives and family friends left for the evening; Craig and Ellie asked their daughter about Gabe. She only replied that they were officially boyfriend and girlfriend, but they were taking it slow. They agreed to it and both had stated that Gabe was welcome anytime. Ellie had insisted that they get to know him better. Alyson agreed and headed up to her room for the night.

Gabe enjoyed the walk home, thinking and thanking the powers-that-be for the wonderful woman that was now his girlfriend. He came home to an empty home. He headed upstairs for a long rest. He took out his cell and texted Alyson that he was home safely. They talked for a few more minutes before Gabe called it a night.

As the two drifted off to sleep that night; they both realized that this was a new world ready for them to explore. They would do it one step at a time.

* * *

><p><em>And with our new couple drifting off to sleep, so ends the first part of the story...<br>_

_I really have to thank the readers for this. You guys have been reading this story with minimal updates and I'm sure were waiting patiently for this chapter. Many thanks for your continued reading!  
><em>

_So we will now switch to Veronica's part of the story next. Don't worry; you'll see Gabe and Alyson in the next part, but more than likely, you will see the niners shine more in this section than not. I'm currently working on the next chapter, but believe me; it's not an easy thing to do at this moment. The next chapter is about half way complete and not anywhere closer to getting done. I'm hoping that I can put a dent in the rest of the chapter and get to the next one after that. If everything goes well; I should have the next chapter up by October.  
><em>

_Many thanks again to CrashAgainstMySkin for suggestions with Ronnie's storyline. I have a feeling that I will follow your advice; but it will take some time to get to that point. It's not a Degrassi story without a little bit of needed drama first.  
><em>

_Thanks again!  
><em>


	10. Breaking the Girl

_New Chapter Kiddos! _

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Ten: <strong>Breaking the Girl

Veronica zipped up her jacket as she stepped out the front door. The weekend had passed; ending the month of September and bringing in the cooler autumn air of October. She put her gloves on and waited for her brother. Gabe came out a few moments later; locking the door behind him. He zipped up his hoodie and pulled the hood up over his head. He nudged Veronica and the two headed to school.

"I barely saw you this weekend." Ronnie stated. "How was it?"

Gabe laughed. "Best weekend ever."

"You worked a double on Saturday. How is that a good thing?"

"Oh little sister; making a cool two hundred in tips is the icing on the cake."

Veronica looked at him confused. Gabe continued.

"The dinner at the Manning's was fantastic. Alyson and I are a couple now."

"Really? That's great!"

Gabe beamed. "Thank you. I got most of my projects done for the week and got our first date all figured out. It was really a great weekend."

Veronica smiled at her brother's good fortune. It was about time that he had something go right for him for once. "I'm happy for you."

Gabe looked at his sister. "But?"

Ronnie sighed. "I get this feeling that you're not going to be around this year."

"Do I detect a bit of jealousy Ronnie?"

Ronnie sighed. "A bit." Gabe looked at her as they walked to school. "Last year, you were barely around during the winter. You were always doing something." She took a deep breath. "Then you spent second semester all depressed and mopey."

"You'd be all sad and wanting to cut your wrists if you ended up being treated the way I was." Gabe muttered with a hint of sadness in his voice.

"Gabe; I'm sorry. I really am." Veronica pleaded with him.

"It's in the past now." Gabe stated. "I learned from this summer that you have to move on. It was a good thing that Evelyn showed me that."

"Ew."

"Not that o Empress of Brainiacs." Gabe chuckled. "I mean that I could have been Major Downer or go out and enjoy my life. I chose the latter."

"She did help out a lot."

"Who helped out a lot?" Veronica looked up and noticed Alyson Manning in front of them. She watched her brother kiss her and the three continued on.

"Ronnie and I were discussing that she was a bit jealous of the two of us dating."

Ronnie shrugged. "I was merely voicing my opinion was all."

Alyson laughed softly at this. "Ronnie; Gabe and I are taking our time with the relationship. I came out of a bad relationship less than a year ago. I know that he's been having a hard time in the last year as well."

Ronnie thought for a moment. "If you have had nothing but bad times in a relationship; why go ahead and do it all over again?"

The couple looked at Ronnie. It was Gabe that laughed. He put his arm around his sister.

"Do you remember how you felt when Scotty and you would hang out during practice?"

Ronnie blushed a little. "When we would kiss and hold hands? It was nice. I felt all tingly." She looked at them. "Is that what you two want?"

Alyson smiled. "In a sense it's what we want. We became good friends and developed feelings for each other that's deeper that friendship. We're exploring those feelings together."

"But it takes time together to explore that right?" They both nodded; which caused Ronnie to look at her brother. "So you'll be busy and not hang out with me anymore."

"Ronnie; yes I'll spend time with Alyson, but not all of my time. I'm planning on joining the wrestling team; which means that a lot of my time will be training. I want to keep busy, but not in the sense to deal with problems." They stopped in front of the school. "I remember saying to you on the first day of school that I would always make time for us to our time together. I meant that."

Alyson cleared her throat. "Ronnie? Would you like to hang out with me?"

Ronnie looked at her skeptically. "Why would you want to hang out with me?"

Alyson looked at her. "Truth be told; I'm still new to the area and I really don't have any female friends. I like hanging out with you and your friends."

"See?" Gabe turned to his sister. "You two can hang out when I'm training. It's all good now. You spend a lot of time with Nikki, Rosalynn, Emily and J.J. Now it can be one more person to make friends with."

Ronnie smiled. "Okay. That sounds good to me."

They stood outside of Degrassi for a few moments talking. Shane Milligan had passed and reminded Gabe that practice started today. He nodded and Gabe said his goodbyes to sister and girlfriend; following Shane to the signup list outside the gym. The two girls stood outside after Gabe left. Ronnie turned to Alyson once Gabe was out of earshot.

"Did you really mean what you said?"

Alyson looked at her with a hurt look on her face. "You really didn't believe me?"

Ronnie shrugged. "I'm used to people saying that to me and turning on me pretty much right after that. They find out I'm a geek and a nerd."

"That's Juliette's loss, not yours. Besides; you're not the only one to get picked on." Alyson put an arm around Ronnie's shoulder. "I'm a band geek for Christ's sake. I would get picked on just as much as you would."

Ronnie laughed at that. "Yeah, but at least you look like a cool band geek."

"She's more fashionable that Juliette Hogart these days." The two girls turned to see Nicolette Coyne standing there. Ronnie hugged Nikki when she showed up. Alyson nodded at Nikki as a hello; in which Nikki blushed back at her. The three watched as the Sinclair-Coyne twins walked up to them.

"Well look what the janitors left out on the front." Elizabeth Sinclair-Coyne sneered at the three girls. "They left three pieces of human garbage."

Edgar Sinclair-Coyne rolled his eyes. "Stop being mean to them Lizzie. One of people that you consider garbage is our cousin."

"Yeah; bastard of a cousin of course." Elizabeth stated; rolling her eyes.

Alyson made an effort to take a step towards Elizabeth, but Nikki stopped her. Nikki looked at her and shook her head; as to say that she wasn't worth it. Nikki wasn't quick enough to stop Ronnie though.

"What is your malfunction? Did someone try to drop a house on you this morning or did your winged monkeys take a piss in your cereal?"

Nikki looked at Ronnie in complete shock while Alyson laughed out loud. Edgar covered his mouth but laughed silently; shoulders shaking in reaction. Elizabeth glared at them. She put her nose in the air and started to walk away. She turned and looked at her brother.

"Well? Are you coming with me?"

Edgar snorted. "I'm not your keeper; you can handle yourself."

Elizabeth sneered at him and turned; heading into the building. Edgar shook his head and turned back to the group.

"I'm sorry about my sister. She lost an argument with mom this morning."

Alyson took a breath and looked at him with a smile. "She's the one that has to apologize to us; not you."

"So that was what the shouting was all about this morning." Nikki stated. Edgar nodded.

"You know how it is when she doesn't get her way." Edgar sighed. "She has to make everyone else's life miserable." He turned to Ronnie. "Well played; by the way."

Ronnie shrugged. "She didn't get her way; that's the way it rolls sometimes."

Nikki turned to her best friend with fear in her eyes. "You shouldn't have provoked her."

Ronnie looked at her friend. "What is she going to do? Ostracize me from my friends? Go to Simpson?"

"I'd back you up." Alyson commented; causing Ronnie to smile.

"That's exactly what she'll do." Nikki sniffed. "She's a mean little…"

"Even though it's true; don't finish that statement." Edgar looked at his cousin. "You know what her issue is. That's not mom or dad's fault and you know it."

Ronnie looked at Edgar. "Aunt Heather's fault?" Edgar nodded to this while Nikki looked at her in surprise. Alyson looked to each of them in confusion.

"Aunt Heather is mom's sister." Edgar grimaced. "Guess which one of us kids is her favorite? Of course it's been like that since Aunt Fiona stood up to her."

Nikki rolled her eyes. "Oh sure blame my mom."

"I'm not blaming Auntie Nikki; I admired her as much as you do." Edgar sighed. "Who was it that stood in defense of you and her?"

"Can we finish this later?" Nikki whispered. "Bell's going to ring and I need to get to my locker."

Edgar nodded. "We can finish this at lunch; that is if you survive the rest of the morning." He turned to the three girls and smiled. "See you out here?"

The three nodded as Edgar headed up the stairs. Alyson said her goodbyes and headed up the stairs. Ronnie turned and looked at Nikki. Nikki had a faraway look in her eyes. Ronnie placed a hand on her friend's shoulder and gave her a light shake. Nikki shook her head and looked at her friend and smiled. They headed up the stairs and to their lockers. Ronnie had gotten her books and went over to Nikki's locker. Nikki was staring at the inside door of her locker.

Ronnie put an arm around Nikki's right side. "Hey, are you still with us?"

Nikki nodded. "Sorry about this morning Ronnie." She placed her hand on a picture of her mom and herself taken within the last year. "It's times like this that I really miss her."

Ronnie cleared her throat. "I know that she's gone physically, but she's with you always. I'm sure that she's watching you right now."

Nikki turned and smiled at her friend. "I'm sure she is." She sighed before she continued. "I just wish that I had another parent to talk to at times."

"Did you try calling your dad?"

Nikki nodded, rolling her eyes as she spoke. "Dad is on another book tour. I think he's in Calgary this week with the signings and all."

Ronnie thought for a moment or two before speaking. "What about Ms. Moreno? You said that they were close…"

Nikki laughed. "I said that they were lovers. There is a difference."

"Still; you have to be somewhat close to a lover, correct?"

"Now you're talking semantics." Nikki stated. "Besides, what do I say to her?"

Ronnie was about to speak when the bell rang. Nikki shut her locker and the two friends ran to their first class of the day. Ronnie had spent a good portion of the morning trying to figure out what to say to Nikki. She did notice that she was getting some dirty looks from some of her other classmates. She knew that it had to do with Elizabeth's silver tongue, but would handle it as time would allow.

English class had passed with little incident. Walking into Science class; Ronnie could barely get through the class, as most of her fellow students were either giving her dirty looks or were doing their best to hinder her from finishing her project. Nikki did her best to support her best friend, but she realized that it was starting to affect her. Media Immersion was less painful, but had a very tense moment when Elizabeth had posed a question about cyber-bullying and false rumors on the internet. Nikki had glared cousin; Ronnie just shook her head and told her to forget all about it. Ronnie was able to find peace in Art class and was quiet most of the time. Nikki tried to get Ronnie to talk with her brother about what was going on, but Ronnie stated to her that it was her problem and she would take care of it.

When Ronnie had made it to the cafeteria; she was hanging on by a thread. She knew that all it would take was a balance in the right direction for her to break. She waited in line with Nikki when it started. J.J. had walked up to her with Emily.

"Hey Ronnie," J.J. had gotten her attention. "I've been trying to get your attention."

Ronnie had looked up; her eyes beginning to tear up. J.J. looked and noticed this.

"Okay." He said with a smile. "That's what I thought. I was trying to tell Emily that you didn't say anything about her."

"How can you say that?" Emily said with a hint of hurt feelings in her voice. "We've known each other for years. Ronnie now decides that I'm not worth her time and adds insult to injury."

Nikki looked at Emily. "What did Ronnie supposedly say?"

Emily sighed. "She called me the daughter of a terrorist and baby-killer."

Ronnie looked at Emily in surprise. "Em; I never said that. That was all Elizabeth."

"Considering the look of surprise on your face when I said that; I'd have to believe you." Emily started to smile. "So what did you do to her?"

"She stood up to her." Edgar said from behind Emily. "I've gone around and took care of most of the problems. I wasn't able to find a couple of the people that she talked about."

Ronnie looked at Edgar and smiled. "Thank you; you didn't have to do that for me."

Edgar blushed slightly. "Yes I did. It was my twisted sister's idea of revenge. It was the least I could do for you."

J.J. grinned. "See? I told you Em."

"I'm sorry that I doubted you Ronnie." Emily had an embarrassed look on her face. "Can you forgive me?"

Ronnie smiled slightly. "There was nothing to apologize for Em. We've been friends for the last ten years." She moved down the line. "You know that could of just came to me."

"I was upset." Emily shrugged, getting in line behind Nikki. "I should have known that though. Elizabeth's trying to get the Queen Bee status of us niners."

"My dear cousin has to be the best in everything." Nikki stated. "She will step on anyone or just barrel right through them."

The four of them walked down the line; collecting their lunch. They didn't notice the three people descending on their position. It was Ronnie that felt the wrath first; someone dumped an ice cold drink down the back of her uniform top. There was a sound that came from the cafeteria that they all knew something was up.

Ronnie noticed that the three people that were behind her. She noticed Juliette Hogart with an empty cup, shaking out the last remaining drops out of the cup. Rosalyn Brooks was a few steps behind Juliette with her arms crossed across her chest. Barely behind her was the root of the problem; Elizabeth Sinclair-Coyne. She was wearing a smug look on her face.

"That's what you get for telling everyone about what happened over the summer." Juliette dropped the cup on the ground. "What gives you the right to do so?"

Rosalyn spoke up next. "Stuck up rich bitch? Is that what you think of me? We've known each other since we were in diapers and this is how you treat our friendship?"

Ronnie stared at Elizabeth. She was the reason behind all of this. She was going down. Ronnie felt that she was going to cry, but she pushed that back and took a few deep breaths. Nikki was trying to pull her away from the situation, but Ronnie wasn't moving.

Ronnie opened her eyes and looked directly at Elizabeth. She had this look on her face that she was going in for the kill. All three looked at Ronnie and promptly took a step back. Ronnie spoke in a manner that was directed to the three of them, but everyone heard it. Her eyes never left Elizabeth.

"Rosalyn; we've been friends since we were little. In all of that time have I ever stated that I was jealous of you? Have I ever made comments in front of you or behind your back about your parents' success? Yes, you have money. My family does too. I've never flaunted that in front of ANY of my friends; even if they didn't have anything. We've been friends before the money thing was an issue."

Rosalynn looked at Ronnie in surprise. She wasn't expecting that. Emily and J.J. moved towards Rosalynn and talked to her while Ronnie continued.

"Juliette," Ronnie started to laugh. "Shane Milligan was right about you. You know how I know this? Evan told all of his old friends; including Jimmy, Shane, Ogre, Tony and Benny. That spread through the school like a wildfire. Did it ever occur to you that no one wanted to touch you when they found out? The only reason that you're dating Brian is that he didn't know because like me; he started here this year."

Juliette grabbed the front of Ronnie's uniform shirt. "You're just as much of a bitch as that cunt that's dating your loser of a brother."

Juliette felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned and all of the color ran from her face. Alyson was standing right behind her with a predatory grin on her face.

"Hey Princess Hollywood; I've got something of a rebuttal to your comment." Alyson swung her right fist into Juliette's nose; breaking it. Ronnie watched for a second as Alyson pinned Juliette down and the two girls started exchanging fisticuffs.

Ronnie turned back to Elizabeth. Elizabeth looked green as the sudden reality hit her. Ronnie sighed. "Just you and I bitch." Ronnie launched herself at Elizabeth as the cafeteria was cheering for the fight that was going on. Ronnie had pinned Elizabeth to the ground. She punched her once before getting off of her and hauling the would-be Queen Bee off of the floor. She flipped Elizabeth into the hot lunch counter. Elizabeth screamed out in pain; which seemed to fuel Ronnie's bloodlust. She growled as she stalked towards the center of her aggression. She felt arms hold her from behind her.

Ronnie howled like a wild animal caught in a trap. She tried and was able to free her right arm and swung at the person that was trying to restrain her. She couldn't stop when her fist collided with the side of her brother's head. Gabe stumbled back a step or two and shook his head. Ronnie stopped cold and looked at her brother. All of the hatred and anger ebbed away.

"Gabriel…?"

He didn't say anything but looked towards the cousins. "Keep them separated."

"Hey Gabe! I could use a hand over here!" Shane Milligan shouted.

Ronnie watched Gabe moved from her side and moved over to his girlfriend and ex-best friend. Ronnie watched but didn't hear anything but a buzzing noise in her ears. The two girls were at each others' throat. Gabe pulled Alyson and kept her away from Juliette. He had both of his hands on her shoulders and was trying to calm her down. Shane was in between Gabe and Juliette; Juliette slapped Shane and pointed at him, yelling. Shane got in her face and shouted back; causing Juliette to stop.

The buzzing started to die down as the cafeteria doors opened and most of the teachers came in and started their way.

* * *

><p><em>Ah Degrassi; you have to love it. <em>

_I've been following the latest season and I'm really liking what's going on. _

_So, I was able to get this out before the end of the month (like I had promised). I haven't started the latest chapter yet, but I'm hoping to do so in the next few days. I have a few days this week without anyone at home and I'm hoping to get a head start on the next chapter. How did you like it? _

_I wanted to do this chapter for a while. There have been some things that have been brewing in the background and I feel that this chapter will be the start of all of those issues coming to a head before Christmastime (story time wise). This isn't the first confrontation with some of the characters and there will definetely be more before the story ends. It wouldn't be Degrassi without any form of drama. _

_I'll try to aim to have the next chapter up around Thanksgiving. Thanks to all of your support and followings; it keeps me writing. _

**_Next: The Fallout from the Fight and we get to see some old favorites from Degrassi's past. _**


	11. What I've Done Part I

_Sorry for the lateness of this chapter!_

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><p><strong>Chapter Eleven: <strong>What I've Done Part I

The green sedan pulled into the parking lot for visitors. The car was quickly turned off and the door opened up. Spinner Mason stood up from the driver's side and took in deep breath. He looked over to his former alma mater and smiled. He spent the better part of his school time here and had the memories to remind him; both good and bad memories flooded back into him. He closed his eyes and took it all in; which brought a smile to his face. He closed the door and started walking to the front entrance. He noticed that a black sedan pull up to the front steps. As he got closer to the car, he noticed that the plates on the car were from Canada, but were diplomatic tags. He moved away from the door of the car and started up the stairs. It was the voice from the car that make him stop in his tracks.

"Just park the car in the visitor's lot and I'll be back as soon as I find out what's going on with the kids. No arguments Steven; just do it."

Spinner turned around and looked at the red-headed woman that slammed the door of the car. He smiled as part of his past started to walk up the stairs. She hadn't changed much since he left school; she was still as pretty as before, but time had her fill out her form a bit. She looked stressed; there were dark circles under her eyes and there were a few hairs on the top of her head that were changing from red to white.

"Still the hard-as-nails woman that I remember H.J."

Holly J. Sinclair-Coyne looked up at her friend and former boss. She smiled as she saw her friend. Spinner had changed from when they were in school. He had dropped some weight and got himself in shape. He had a few tattoos that were easily covered with a long-sleeve shirt and wore a bandanna for the hair that gone away prematurely (he tended to shave his head most of the time, but he was caught heading into work).

"Spin!" She headed up the stairs and hugged her old friend. "You look great! How long has it been?"

Spinner half-smiled. "I think when Declan had the service for Fiona about a year ago." Holly J. nodded. "How's he holding up?"

Holly J. sighed. "You know Declan; burying himself in his work and not talking about it." She crossed her arms. "I don't know how he does it. I want him to reach out and talk about it. I know it hurts him."

"They were twins H.J.; of course it's going to hurt more than the rest of us, even after all of this time. Jane and I were talking about it over the weekend. She was going on about how close the three of you were together."

Holly J. smiled a bit. "She always had a soft spot for Fi-fi." She sighed. "How's Jane doing by the way?"

Spinner shook his head. "Swamped at work; as usual. Trina, Jimmy and Jane started that new case today. I have a feeling that I'm not going to see the kids all that much this week. I was just about to leave for work when Darcy called the house. She tells me that both of the kids are in Simpson's office for a fight."

Holly J. looked at Spinner in surprise. "That's the reason that I'm here. Darcy called me and said that Elizabeth was in a fight."

Both parents looked at each other and laughed. Spinner shook his head.

"So which one started it?"

"Elizabeth; no question." Holly J. nodded. "She didn't get her way this morning and I told her that that's the way things go. She didn't like that answer and left for school without another word to Declan or I."

"Should I pay for the damages now and avoid a lawsuit?" Spinner asked.

"Spin; we've been friends for a long time." Holly J. smirked. "Besides; I can't beat that wife of yours in any courtroom."

Spinner laughed. "Welcome to my world." Spinner opened the door and offered Holly J. to enter before him. She bowed a bit and entered with Spinner walking in behind her.

Principal Archie "Snake" Simpson sat behind his desk. He put his elbows on the top of the desk and placed his hands together. He looked at each of the parents that were each a former student of his. Sitting in front of him were Holly J. Sinclair-Coyne and Manuela "Manny" Santos. Standing up behind them, leaning against a wall was Gavin "Spinner" Mason. To his left were two of his teachers that had kids here; Craig Manning and Coach Owen Milligan. He sighed as looked at each of them. When they were kids; each one of them had spent time in this office and for different reasons. It caused Simpson to smile a bit; which in turn caused them to smile back at him.

"So that's everything that happened from all the parties involved." Simpson stated as he pushed back from his desk. "I'm sorry to get all of you away from your day about this."

"Snake; it's your job." Manny smiled. "We wouldn't expect to be happy to find out our kids were in a fight and it wasn't reported. We would rather hear it from you or Darcy if we had to."

"Archie, they're our kids." Owen started. "We have to know what happened; even if they weren't totally involved like Gabe or Shane. We would want to know."

Spinner nodded. "Like Owen said; we would want to know." He nodded at Owen, which caused Owen to smirk. "Speaking of our little hooligans; where are they now?"

This caused a general bit of laughter from the six adults. Manny turned to her friend and smiled.

"Did you just call my daughter; your goddaughter, a hooligan?"

Spinner smiled as he shrugged. "I expected it out of Gabe a bit. He spent a lot of last year in trouble. Veronica; I'm a little surprised about though."

"You weren't the only one Spin." Craig looked in his direction. "Gabe's a good student, if not a bit of a like you in school. He watches out for a lot of the kids."

"He can't be everywhere though." Owen chimed in. "I've got Veronica in my gym class. She does get picked on by some of the older girls; no offense to Miss Santos, but by Juliette quite a bit. I've done what I can to keep them separated."

"Wait, this is getting reported now?" Manny looked at the two teachers with anger. "Why am I just now getting notified about it now?"

"You haven't been getting the notices?" Simpson asked. "I've been sending them home to you; as well as you two." He finished looking at Holly J. and Spinner.

"Are you kidding me?" Holly J. asked. "We haven't even received a phone call about this."

"I've had Darcy call about each incident." Simpson looked on. "Juliette and Elizabeth have been bullying Veronica Mason; as well as other female students."

"Do you know which other students?" Manny asked.

Simpson looked over to Craig and Owen; they both nodded at him. Simpson sighed.

"The main ones that they've picked on have been Veronica Mason, Nicolette Coyne and Emily Cameron." Owen commented. "That's just the girls."

"Wait," Spinner asked. "Just the girls? Who else?"

"Jason J. Hogart." Craig finished. "He's been tormented by his sister mostly."

Manny covered her eyes while Holly J. covered her mouth with her hands. Spinner placed a hand on each of the women's shoulders in comfort to them. He continued with the questions.

"How are the older kids involved? You mentioned that Gabe was involved as well as Craig's daughter."

"Along with Shane," Owen started. "They were trying to break up the fight. Well Shane and Gabe were trying to break up the fight."

"Alyson was one of the combatants." Craig answered. "Apparently Juliette and her do not get along very well."

"Those that do not learn from history are deemed to repeat it." Manny clearly stated.

"Manny…" Craig retorted, but Manny placed her hand up to stop him.

"Craig; I'm not blaming our past." She turned his direction. "We hashed everything out when we were filming that movie so long ago. We're fine now." She sighed. "I just can't believe that my own daughter is bullying; let alone her own brother." Holly J. nodded in agreement.

Spinner huffed. "I figured that it would be my son; I wasn't exactly star student material when I was going here."

"I knew my son was in on some of it the last couple of years," Owen spoke up and looked at Spinner. "But between Jimmy and Gabe; he's turning himself around." This caused Spinner to smile. He mouthed a thank you to Owen, which he returned.

"Look, I know that we all could point fingers on this, or about each other's parenting" Craig cleared his voice. "But it happened. I think now that we're all on the same page; we work to fixing it."

Simpson nodded. "I agree. If we move forward; not only will this be behind us, but we can move forward. Gabe and Shane are cleared. They can continue with the rest of the week." He sighed as he continued. "The four students involved, unfortunately; are suspended for the rest of this short week. They'll be welcomed back on Monday, but I'm suggesting therapy sessions with Darcy to get things out in the open."

"No offense to anyone, but I'm hoping separately Mr. Simpson." Spinner said. The rest of the parents nodded to this as well.

"It's a small school." Simpson stated. "I'll make it a point for the teachers to watch out for any incidents. As soon as anything is noticed; it will be brought to my attention. I agree with the sessions to be one-on-one. Everything will be held in the strictest of confidence."

When the parents agreed they were led to the front desk. They stood for a moment while Simpson went to get the parties involved. Manny and Holly J. were catching up while the dads spoke.

"I just wanted to thank you for what Gabe's done with my son." Owen stated again. "He's a good kid. I just wanted you to know that."

Spinner was about to reply when a woman in a military dress uniform walked in. Owen looked over and excused himself and met the woman. Craig turned to Spinner.

"I have to admit when Alyson and Gabe started dating; I was looking for any reason not to like him." Craig sighed. "He's really a good kid."

Spinner smiled. "I appreciate that Craig. Alyson's got a good head on her shoulders for the most part, but we have enjoyed having come by the house here and there." He half smiled. "So the two of them are dating?"

"He asked us if we would allow Alyson on a date with him. I think that's how kids are doing the dating thing now." Both fathers laughed at this. In the end; they both knew that any bad feelings between them would go away in time. Craig excused himself as he heard the conversation between Owen and the woman become a little heated.

"Hey Spin." Manny said as she hugged her friend.

"I hate that we have to keep seeing each other here at school functions."

Holly J. laughed at this. "Yeah, this is one function that we should have had a long time back. I still can't believe it."

Manny sighed. "You said it yourself Holly J.; it was more Heather's doing than yours. You can't blame yourself."

"So what happened over the summer with Juliette?" Spinner asked.

Manny shook her head. "Remember when Emma got a "social disease"?"

Spinner's eyes grew wide. "Really?"

Manny nodded. "Among a few other things like lying, stealing, destruction of property. Yeah; Jay and I had a real hard time over the summer with her."

"Do you think she was trying to get attention?" Holly J. asked.

Manny shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not. She was kinda boy crazy like I was at her age."

The rest of the conversation ended when Owen shouted at the woman.

"Look! You walked out of the picture Anya! Your career was more important!"

"He's still my son!" She turned and went the direction that Simpson went.

The three parents looked at each other. It was Holly J. that spoke; it was barely a whisper.

"Anya?"

* * *

><p><em>I was planning to have this out by Thanksgiving. As you can tell it's like two weeks to Christmas. Yeah; I'm real good about updating...<em>

_I'm hoping once the holidays are over that I'll be able to go ahead and update once a month like I was planning originally. Hopefully._

_So I wanted the parents to have some presidence in this first part. I hope that their reactions are kind of realistic, but I've always though that as one gets older that they can forgive the ghosts of their pasts. It seems that the parents; for the most part, have moved on and realized that back then they were just dumb kids. _

_What about the kids? Well I'm planning to have that out in the second part here in the next few weeks. We'll learn why each one did what they did and some motivations as to why as well. _

_Thank you so much for following and reading! I appreciate it very much!_


	12. What I've Done Part II

_Finally? Yeah yeah, quit griping and get to reading. Notes at the end..._

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><p><strong>Chapter Twelve: <strong>What I've Done part II

Gabriel sat on the table in the cafeteria. He wanted to sit higher just in case things got ugly again. He was surprised that it didn't; even with the two police officers standing at the doorway outside. He felt the presence of his little sister at his right side. He put an arm around her and let her sit there; doing the best he could to comfort her. He watched as Alyson was not far away. She had opened a window and was halfway out of it. She was on her second or third cigarette; Gabe had lost count and didn't care at this time. He watched Shane; who was between his sister and him and Alyson. Shane had grabbed two chairs and used them to do push-ups.

Gabe glanced over to the other side of the cafeteria. He watched the red haired girl with her phone in her hands. She was texting (a guess) as the sound of clicking that took over the silence. He then looked over to his ex-best friend. She sat on a table and just looked down at her hands. Her nose had swelled up and she was starting to get dark circles under her eyes. He rubbed his sister's shoulder as she shuddered. He returned his attention to her.

"You okay kid?" He looked up and Shane was looking at her. Gabe smiled.

Ronnie nodded. She felt that if she spoke, she might have thrown up.

"I can't believe you clocked your brother." He whispered to her, causing Gabe to smile some more. "I know that you Mason kids are tough, but I guess your brother's a little slow and it's taking him some time to register it."

The two heard a small tinkle of laughter from the girl. Gabe could only shake his head.

"It was almost as funny as the pie incident." Shane looked at Gabe confused. Ronnie started to shake with laughter. Alyson had looked over, putting out her finished smoke. She smiled and walked over to the three of them.

"Pie incident?" She asked. "I don't think I've heard this one."

"Yes let's have the clown entertain the masses." Came Juliette's voice from across the room. There was so much hatred and venom in her tone that everyone looked in her direction.

"Now I'm a clown to you?" Gabe commented, in total disbelief. "You know, up until this year you would have been cheering me on. You used to love hearing the stories that I used to tell." He felt Alyson's head on his shoulder. He wrapped his other arm around Alyson's waist, pulling her closer.

Juliette cheeks flushed a red color. She was reminded how close that they were. She used to sit where Alyson was sitting. She snorted at the faint memory.

"Yeah, well I guess I grew up."

"Yeah, into a hate-filled bitch." Alyson commented.

"What was that?"

Alyson pulled her head off of her boyfriend's shoulder. "You heard me; Princess Hollywood. I said you turned into a hate-filled bitch. Or did being the town whore make you deaf and dumb?"

This caused Shane to cover his mouth to hide a grin. Gabe felt his little sister shake with laughter. The smile on Alyson's face grew bigger. Gabe placed a hand on her shoulder; trying to keep her out of trouble.

"Now I'm the town whore?" Juliette asked, her voice rising in anger. "Who gives you the right to judge me?"

"I warned you last year Hogart." Shane spoke up. "I warned you that when you started dating Evan that you would be dating half of the football team."

"Half of the football team?" Ronnie looked up. "I don't understand."

Shane turned to her and answered. "When Juliette started dating Evan Ridgley; whom was the captain of the team last year, I warned her that dating him would be trouble."

"You never warned me."

"I'm calling bullshit on that one." Shane grinned. "It was outside of Chemistry last November. It was the last Friday before December. I remember."

Gabe nodded. "I remember you talking about that. I asked you when you sat down what Shane wanted. You said something about him giving you a warning about some football player."

"It didn't mean that I became the town bicycle."

"Bicycle?"

"I'll tell you at home later Ronnie."

Shane continued. "I'm a jock; I knew what was going on at those parties. If you weren't having loud and annoying sex with Evan; it was one of the other starters." He scoffed at her. "I just can't believe that you let Evan tape some of them. Of course, it could have been all of the booze that you consumed."

Juliette's face grew a deep red color as Shane talked. Gabe looked at her in anger and surprise. Alyson had a look on her face that Gabe couldn't read; it was a look of surprise and pity. Ronnie was shocked and Elizabeth had a look of disgust on her face.

"Well at least I didn't sleep with an entire team to be popular. Money and putting people in their place is the way to be a leader in any school." Elizabeth said in a superior voice.

"That may be, but my sister ended up putting you in your place. What about that?"

Elizabeth ignored Gabe's comment and continued to text on her phone.

"Lead by fear."

Ronnie looked at Shane. "What do you mean?"

Shane sighed. "You make people respect you by means of fear and intimidation." He shook his head. "The last two years I followed that mantra and it got me labeled as a bully. Forget that I made All Area in wrestling the last two years; I had a reputation of an asshole."

Gabe nodded. Shane looked over and lightly punched him on the shoulder.

"What? You said it, not me."

Shane cleared his voice. "Ronnie; if it wasn't for Alyson, Gabe and you, I would have been down that path again this year. You three; among others, showed me what I was doing. I've been working for the better part of this year to better myself."

"Well that works for you." Elizabeth stated. "That just means that I'm better than you."

"Just remember Prissy Pants; it's lonely at the top when you step on everyone to get there." Shane commented darkly.

Elizabeth continued to ignore them. Shane merely shrugged his shoulders. He looked up and noticed that there were two people missing.

"Hey where's the Princess?"

Gabe noticed there was no weight next to him. "Where's Alyson?"

The three got up and looked to where the two were shooting daggers at each other by the lunch line. The three moved over to them and got in the middle.

"What's going on?" Gabe asked.

"Not sure." Alyson commented. "I saw Hollywood getting up and moving this way. I figured that I'd stop her. That's when you three got here."

"It's none of your damn business what I do." Juliette snarled. "Go back to your loser boyfriend and leave me alone."

"Did you call my boyfriend a loser?"Alyson growled. "I'm sure that what you have to tell yourself because I took advantage of the situation."

"What?" Gabe asked.

"Haven't you noticed that since you and I started talking that she's gotten more and more vicious?" Alyson turned to her boyfriend. "Haven't you ever listened to the conversations in Art class that she's having with the girls in class?"

"Apparently not." Gabe commented. "Now you're spreading rumors about me Juliette?"

"What happened to Jules?" Juliette asked in a pained voice.

Gabe scoffed. "You lost that name when you started a fight with my sister." He sighed as he continued. "So what? You can't have me as the 'faithful little puppy' anymore and you trying to start shit?"

"That's not it." Juliette said.

"Then what is it Juliette?" Gabe asked, frustrated. "I've done all of the work in trying to be friends. I find out that you've been tormenting not only my only sister, but her friends and your baby brother. I get that there's something wrong, but for whatever reason you keep going down this dark path." He looked her dead in the eyes. "I can't help if you can't tell me"

Juliette looked at her former friend; tears running down her cheeks. "I want you."

"Well you can't have me!" Gabe shouted. "I'm not property Juliette! I am a human being, well mostly. I asked you at Christmas this past year for us to start dating. You thought it would be in 'our best interests' not to take that step. You made that choice and stuck with it by dating Evan and half of the football team."

Juliette turned and slapped Gabe in the face for his comment. Gabe didn't retaliate or even comment. He looked at Juliette with fury in his eyes. He merely turned and found his seat back at the table. Ronnie took off after him.

Alyson turned and took a step or two before turning back to Juliette. "You had your chance Hollywood." She sighed and looked at her with pity. "He told me what your words and actions did to him. You broke his heart and he spent the better part of last semester and summer trying to put it back together."

"So you came in and tried to replace me?" Juliette asked quietly.

Alyson shallowly laughed. "No, I was a friend to him first. We just started dating after we talked and realized we have feelings for each other. I'm not trying to replace you in his heart; I'm trying to become an added part of it." Alyson walked over to her boyfriend.

Shane sighed. "I warned you."

Juliette didn't look at him. She knew that he was right.

"Well, some people are hard headed; I should know." He sighed. "Maybe you should make some time to talk to someone about what's going on. Maybe they can help and maybe in time he'll forgive you and maybe he'll let you back in. Maybe the rest of your victims will forgive you in time too."

Juliette stood and let the words sink in. She could feel the presence of someone next to her. She looked and noticed Elizabeth.

"I told you that they would pull this. They would turn it on you."

Juliette looked at the younger girl. Elizabeth stood there smiling at her. Juliette smiled back at her. No one expected to see Juliette make a fist and punch Elizabeth in the nose; the sound of cartilage breaking from muscle and bone.

"Stay away from me you vile bitch. Next time you talk to me, I'll make sure that what Ronnie did to you is a distant nightmare." She walked away and walked out the cafeteria door. The police tried to stop her, but she merely shrugged them off and continued down the hallway.

The door opened after a moment, but it wasn't part of the school staff. Shane looked up in anger as he noticed the uniformed woman at the door. He shot her the darkest of looks. The other three looked on in surprise.

"We're being shipped off to military?" Ronnie squeaked out. "I didn't think you were serious about fighting in school Gabe, but now…"

Her brother looked at her. "I was kidding."

"No" Shane growled. "She's here for me. It's my absentee mother."

* * *

><p><em>So with the holidays done and my lazy ass finally updating; the kids' point of view is completed. Sorry for the cliffhanger.<em>

_Did you get the chance to read **Pretty in Pink**? If you haven't give it a read and leave a review if you would like. _

_I really want to thank **ALL **of the readers for this story; as well as the rest of my works. You are the people that I'm writing for. I've been following the numbers and for some reason, y'all keep on coming back. That is a real vote of confidence to any writer. Thank you. _

_Special thanks to those that have been waiting for a new chapter. It took six weeks, but it's here. _

_I'm really hoping to stick to a once a month chapter. February isn't too far off. Let's see how well I do. _

_Feel free to PM/Review. Next chapter will pick up where we leave off here. _

_Thanks again! M._


	13. Draw the Line

_Continuing the story and I realize that it's early. Enjoy!_

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter Thirteen: <strong>Draw the Line

Shane walked over to where Anya had walked in. He stood off about ten feet from her and saluted her. Anya looked at her son darkly.

"That's not necessary…"

"It's good to see you again Captain McPherson." Shane stated in a clear voice. "I'm sure that you're here to see me."

"That's not funny." Anya continued.

"It's not supposed to be funny Captain." Shane replied. "I'm showing you respect like I always do."

Owen walked in the door; watching the whole beginning. "How did you expect him to react Anya? He barely sees you and when he does; he spends his time with the enlisted."

"That's not true!" Anya turned to Owen. "I spend plenty of time with him."

"That's incorrect Ma'am." Shane commented. "The last time I was there was over a year ago for a weekend. I saw you for about five minutes before you received a phone call and had to leave. I ended up working in the Motorpool with Sergeant Benson. He ushered me back to your home that evening. I then spent most of Saturday in the gym with the recruits and non-comms. I ate with them and did workouts with them." Shane took a breath. "Should I continue Ma'am?"

Anya had looked at the other students in the room. Alyson, Ronnie and Gabe had moved closer to Shane. "I don't think this is something that we should discuss this now."

"Might as well mother." Shane growled in frustration. "These are my friends. These are the people that I was trying to help. Of course I can understand that if you don't understand that concept."

"Shane…" Owen looked at his son. "That was a bit much."

"So what?" Shane shot daggers at Anya while talking to him. "Dad; if it wasn't for you and Uncle Tristan and his school friends helping out in those first years, I'm not sure what would have happened with her! It's bad enough that I would have probably been more of a 'army brat' than I am now!"

"Dude, come on." Gabe placed a friendly hand on his shoulder.

Shane pulled away. "No Gabe; she needs to hear this."

"No." Ronnie this time had grabbed one of his hands and looked him in the eyes. "There's no reason to make a scene. She's your mom and I think that you should talk to her, not yell."

Shane looked at his friends. They actually wanted to help him. Shane nodded and took a couple steps before stopping in front of the doors. He turned back to his parents.

"I'm sorry for my words dad." He looked towards Anya. "If you wanted to know; I was actually trying to break up a fight, not get involved." The four friends walked out of the door.

They walked towards the front doors. They didn't say much to each other. They stopped in front of the mural that was opposite the front doors and sat down. Shane took in a deep breath.

"That was hard to do."

Gabe smiled at him. "I was trying to save a friend from making a huge mistake."

"You're a good man Gabriel."

Gabe shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not. I'm just trying to leave a door open for you to talk."

Alyson chimed in. "It's that new leaf thing that you've been trying. You know, the thing where you're not that much of a dick."

"This coming from the girl that broke a girl's nose and tried to separate her shoulder?"

Alyson blushed. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Shane laughed. "Sure you don't." He noticed that his hand was still in Ronnie's.

"Did you mean what you said?"

Shane sighed. "Of course I did. Ronnie; you guys have been slowly changing me from an asshole to somewhat of a nice guy." Shane grinned as he continued. "Granted not as much of a nice guy as your brother. I still have a reputation of a jock to keep up."

Gabe shook his head with a grin on his face. Alyson laughed at this. Even Ronnie's laugh chimed in. Shane rubbed Ronnie's hand. She had blushed at this. Alyson looked at the front desk and noticed some of the parents.

"Mom's here." Alyson groaned. "I'm dead."

Gabe smiled. "Want me to be your human shield?"

"Please?"

This caused some laughter with the foursome. Gabe got up; stopping momentarily to whisper something to Shane. Shane looked at his friend; to which Gabe just nodded. He stood up; taking Alyson's hand in his.

"See you at practice after school?" Gabe asked.

Shane nodded. "Sure man. See you in the gym. I'm looking forward to see what you got."

Gabe nodded. He turned to his sister. "You're in luck. Dad's here instead of mom. Take a minute or two to collect yourself. I'll stall for you." With that; the couple walked down towards the parents, Alyson a little behind Gabe.

"Oh god, what am I going to do?" Ronnie asked, panic settling in.

"Deep breath first and foremost." Shane said. "Just tell the truth about what happened."

Alyson looked at Shane. "I can't do this alone."

Shane looked back at her. "This one; you're going to have to. The first one is the one that sucks. As long as you tell the truth; you'll be fine."

Ronnie stood up and took a deep breath. "What about you?"

"Huh?" Shane looked up confused.

"What about your parents?" She looked at him. "What are you going to do about them?"

Shane sighed. "I'll make a deal with you. If you go and talk to your parents and you're honest with them about what happened; I'll go talk to mine and see what I can work out."

"Shake on it?" Ronnie asked, hand out to him. Shane smiled and shook her hand. Ronnie smiled and leaned down; kissing Shane on the cheek.

"Thank you for being there for me." She blushed as she walked away.

He watched her walk away. Shane took a breath. "Hey Veronica."

Ronnie turned around, still blushing. She looked at him curiously.

"If you're not grounded this weekend; do you want to catch a movie or something?"

Ronnie blushed even deeper. She nodded as she walked towards the front where her dad was. She was stopped by two women that she knew as her mom's friends.

"Hi honey." Manny hugged her goddaughter. "I'm so sorry that Juliette has been picking on you. I'll talk to her."

"I'll talk to Elizabeth too." Holly J. hugged her after Manny. "I know that high school's rough. I'll try to get her to leave her alone."

"Auntie J; I want to apologize for fighting with Liz." Ronnie sighed. "I didn't break her nose, but I gave her a black eye."

"She has a broken nose?" Holly J. asked.

Ronnie nodded. "Juliette broke her nose when Liz was trying to get her back on her side."

Manny looked at Holly J. "I can pay for the doctor's bill."

Holly J. shook her head. "No don't worry about it. I hate to say it about my own daughter, but I think she had it coming. It's fine Manny."

Holly J. and Manny left and went to talk to their own children. She turned and faced her father. She took a deep breath and faced him.

"Hi dad."

Spinner stood there with his arms crossed. He sighed at his only daughter. Instead of yelling at her, he held his arms out.

"Come here little one." Spinner pulled her into a hug. Ronnie had tears in her eyes as she hugged her father. "Why didn't you tell us what was going on?"

Ronnie looked up to her father. "I was ashamed dad. I thought that I could handle it."

Spinner looked at his son. "Don't you have a class to get to?"

Gabe looked at Spinner in surprise. "Yeah I think so. I'll see you later dad." He turned to his little sister. "Stay out of trouble and I'll see you after practice." With that, Gabe disappeared down the hallway.

Spinner led his daughter to the front door and took a seat at the benches that were there. He looked at her and smiled. "When I got the call, I was just about to walk out the door for work. I have Lucas covering for me until I get there."

"We can talk later." Ronnie said in a hopeful voice. Spinner looked at her; she knew that this would not be the case.

"I'm going to talk to you now." Spinner put his arm around her shoulder. "I would rather say what I need to now. I'll forget it later."

He sighed as he continued. "When I got the call from Darcy about a fight at school; I was so angry. I had told your brother about fighting in school. When I was told that you were in the fight; I was overcome with a bunch of emotions."

"Really?"

Spinner nodded. "Well yeah. It's not every day that your little girl finished a fight. I have to admit that I'm slightly proud of you."

Ronnie looked at her father in surprise. She was about to speak when Spinner held his hand up.

"Let me finish." Ronnie nodded as he continued. "I'm proud that you can handle yourself if you need to. I'm also proud that you can finish a fight that you technically didn't start. That's the good news."

"I knew it." Ronnie groaned.

Spinner smiled. "Yeah that's the good part. The bad is that I'm upset and disappointed that you didn't come to your mom or me about this. Gabe had talked to me in the last month or so about what was going on."

Ronnie was about to yell out, but Spinner stopped her again. She fell silent.

"He didn't know what was going on, but looked into it. He felt that, as your older brother that he needed to make sure that things were okay. He told me and mom in confidence. We talked about it and decided that when you came to us; we would handle it. You never came to us. You handled it and up until now; you were able to keep things in line. I take it that you hit your breaking point?"

Ronnie nodded. "I was just having a bad day. I heard all of these people gossiping about me and I kind of lost it. When I had the two people bullying me and an innocent party confronted me, well I just had enough."

Spinner nodded. "I can relate. Mom would too in this case. I don't like the way you went on about it, but for now things are they way they are." He turned and looked at his daughter. "When it happens again; you come to us and talk to us. We'll handle it like a family."

"Thanks daddy." Ronnie hugged her father. He hugged her back.

"Anytime kiddo." He broke the hug. "The good news is that you're not in trouble. This was your one 'get out of jail' card. The bad news is that you have to tell your mom when she gets home from court. She'll be home by seven."

"Can't you tell her for me?" Ronnie asked pouting.

Spinner shook his head. "She already knows that you're going to talk to her about what happened here today. I didn't tell her about what."

"So I could still be grounded?"

"That's up to her. I told her that I would stand by her decision."

Ronnie slumped her shoulders. "Great."

"I think for a first offense; you'll be okay." Spinner laughed. "Emily will get your homework for you and will have it for you. She'll bring it over on Wednesday after school."

"Wednesday?"

"Hey, it's a reprieve. You'll have plenty of time to work on it on the days that you don't have school." Spinner stood up. "C'mon kiddo; let's get you home." The two got up and started for the doors. Ronnie looked to where Shane was sitting. She gave him thumbs up as they went out the door. Shane returned the gesture as he stood up.

Shane sighed to himself as he walked towards the cafeteria. He looked through the door and noticed that his mother was crying and his dad was holding her.

"It's okay babe. He didn't mean it. He's just mad."

Anya sobbed. "My only child hates me. He's partially right; I don't know him."

"You were deployed babe!" Owen stated. "He doesn't know what you went through. All of the therapy. I only know what you told me."

"After he was born, I should have made it a point to just stay on this side of things."

"You were here for the first two years." Owen pulled her closer. "I didn't exactly make things easy on you either."

"Owen; that's water under the bridge." Anya sighed, wiping her eyes. "Maybe if we'd gotten married like we wanted to."

"That's your call too." Owen smiled. "I still feel all of that love that I did then. I guess I never stopped loving you."

Anya pulled back a bit. "Really?"

"Well yeah. I guess that's why that I'm so protective of Shane. He's the closest person that I have that reminds me of you." Anya lightly laughed, causing Owen to smile. "He really is a good kid. You just have to get past all of the parts that are me."

Anya rolled her eyes. "Oh great, so I'll get to know him by the time he's getting married."

Shane cleared his throat, causing them to look at him. "Maybe we start sooner than that."

The two parents looked at each other and then back at their son.

"Maybe I don't understand what happened between the two of you, but I'd like to learn what happened. I'd actually like to get to know my mom and see what you two see in each other."

"What brought this on?" Owen asked.

"Something a friend said." Shane smirked, thinking of his friends. "Granted after practice, maybe the three of us can do dinner?"

"I don't see why not." Owen commented. "Anya?"

Anya smiled; tears running down her cheeks. "I'd like that."

"I'm sorry for earlier mom." Shane said.

Anya didn't reply; she merely walked up to her son and pulled him into a hug. Owen met them in the middle and joined in the family embrace. Shane thought and thanked his friends for their guidance. It wasn't perfect, but they were his family just as much as his parents are.

* * *

><p><em>And that will complete this particular scene. Hope that you all enjoyed it!<em>

_Didn't see some of that coming did ya? I wasn't trying to go for the cheesy ending; it just sort of happened. Granted; things like this never stay calm for long. It Degrassi for heaven's sake; the best soap opera out there today (in my opinion, unless you count pro wrestling, then Degrassi is tied with that)._

_I'm actually a little bit ahead this time; thus the reason this is out before the end of the month. I'm trying to keep up, but the characters just tend to want their versions of the stories and I've got to sort through it all. I'm planning on continuing the storyline with Ronnie for the time being. I don't think that she's suffered enough yet and I'm planning on making things more difficult for her. Gabe right now is spending his time with wrestling, Alyson, school, work and family (not all in that order). I have a feeling that Gabe; along with some of the others, will show up here and there._

_I'm taking this time to once again thank all of my readers and followers. You guys are part of the reason I write!_

_Special thanks to CrashAgainstMySkin, Islanda and djghostwriter18; you three have been my main motivation to continue this storyline. Thank you for your insight and commentary; trust me, it's a nice little boost when I need it. My humblest thanks!_

_Keep watching for a new chapter here soon._


	14. Lies and Truth

_I've got a new chapter for you guys! Enjoy!_

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><p><strong>Chapter Fourteen: <strong>Lies and Truth

Veronica wiped the sweat from her forehead. She had told her mother what had happened at school that past Monday. While she was upset with her only daughter getting into a fight, she did appreciate why and how she did get into it. Her mother had grounded her for the two days that she was home from school. She didn't talk to her friends or have contact with the outside of the Mason home for those two days. She was glad that her brother was able to explain what was going on to her circle of friends. She had spent the better part of the two days suspended working around the house. She had done most of the general cleaning; the house started to look almost immaculate.

She took off the yellow gloves that were reserved for cleaning and tossed them into the bucket. She sighed and took a drink of water from the sink; then putting the bucket back underneath the sink. She looked over the list of things that she had left to do and smiled when she realized that the list was completed. She took another drink of water and put the glass in the dishwasher. She headed towards the stairs when there was a knock from the front door. Against her better judgment, she answered the door. When she opened the door, she wanted to die of embarrassment.

"Hey Veronica," Shane smiled, leaning against the doorframe. "So you actually do wear regular clothes outside of school."

Ronnie blushed. "I was cleaning, not that I don't wear normal clothes any other time. I'm just comfortable wearing items similar to school. You know, I'm not that attractive and all."

Shane shook his head. "Well that's your opinion. I would have to disagree."

"Flirting Mr. Milligan? I'm surprised."

Shane shrugged. "I'm telling it the way I see it. I didn't know that you ramble."

Ronnie blushed again. "I don't ramble."

"Uh huh." Shane smiled again. "Do you mind if I come in? Gabe and I have an intramural meet today at Bardell."

"An actual match?" Ronnie stepped back and let Shane in.

"No, more of a practice match with them." Shane stated, taking his shoes off. "Bardell's coach and Dad are good friends and we compete for the fun of it early on. It's kind of testing the waters and what not."

"Hey Shane." Spinner stated from the kitchen. "Picking up Gabe for the meet?"

"Mostly sir." Shane smiled as he met Spinner halfway, shaking hands. "If Veronica's not grounded, I'd like to ask you permission to ask her out on a date Friday night."

Ronnie's eyes bugged out of her head and her cheeks turned a deep red. She looked at the two and tried to tell her father not to allow it. Spinner smirked as he looked at his daughter.

"Well she's not grounded anymore. I think she's working the restaurant Friday morning…" Spinner smiled. "I have no issues with it. Jane?"

Jane walked out of the bedroom. She was heading into work a little later. She looked at her husband. She looked at Shane and gave him the once over.

"I caught something about asking my daughter out?" Jane asked. "Is she working this weekend?"

"Friday morning and Saturday night." Spinner offering Jane a cup of coffee. "I try not to work the kids too much during the school year."

Jane nodded. "Well I don't see an issue with it." She looked at Shane. "What grade are you in?"

Shane cleared his throat. "Barely a junior. I'll probably end up graduating with Gabe."

"Same age though?"

"I think I've got Gabe beat by four months." Shane nodded. "My mom pushed to get me into school early. I might have rebelled a bit in my ninth grade year."

"What did you rebel against?" Spinner asked.

"What do you got?" Shane stated, trying to sound like Brando. Spinner and Jane smiled. Jane handed a coin to her husband.

"You're right, he is funny."

"I told you Jane."

Gabe grabbed Shane in a headlock and ruffled his hair. "Yeah, he's not a bad guy. That's if you're into the macho jock type of guy."

"Hey man, I'm working on it." Shane slid out of the headlock and lightly tossed a few jabs at Gabe's open hands. They smiled at each other as they took boxer's stances.

"Not in my kitchen boys. If you two want to do that, go in the backyard." Jane stated.

"Sorry Ma."

"Sorry Mrs. Mason."

Jane shook her head; a slight smile on her face. Spinner looked at his watch and finished his coffee.

"I'll give you guys a ride to school. I'm heading that way."

"Thank you sir." Shane smiled.

"Thanks dad." Gabe walked over to Jane and kissed her cheek and Shane thanked her for the hospitality. Spinner kissed his wife goodbye and the three left out the front door.

Jane took a seat at the kitchen counter. She had another cup of coffee and asked for her daughter to sit down. Ronnie took the other cup and took a sip.

"Why didn't you say I was still grounded?" Ronnie asked after a moment.

Jane chuckled and motioned for her daughter to follow her out into the backyard. Jane took a cigarette out and lit up. Ronnie found a chair nearby.

"I'm not going to fight your battles for you Veronica." Jane said taking a drag. "If you don't want to go out with him, that's fine. It's your decision."

"I tried to tell dad to fight for me too."

Jane laughed at this. "Dad's a good man. He won't do it either."

Ronnie sighed. Jane looked at her daughter and spoke.

"Do you not like Shane?"

Ronnie looked at her feet. "It's not that I don't like him. He's one of Gabe's friends."

"That's the problem?"

Ronnie shook her head. "It's not that." She sighed and spoke again. "He's so different from when I met him on the first day."

"I hear that your brother had something to do with that."

Ronnie looked at her mom. "How did you hear that?"

Jane smiled. "I went into Degrassi the next day. I talked to Simpson and talked to some of the teachers while on their lunches. When I mentioned his name, they had talked about how much of a better student he had become. Teachers and students noticed how much he changed over the school year. It had to do with Gabe and Jimmy."

"Jimmy as well?"

"From what I've heard." Jane took another drag. "You've known the Brooks' for years. They're a good family. Jimmy and Rosalyn are good kids."

"I never thought of that."

"People tend to follow after your brother. He's a great young man." She looked at her daughter. "You're becoming a great young woman. People will follow greater people. Look how your friends look up to you, in a sense."

Ronnie thought about this for a moment. She really never noticed how her friends tended to follow her lead. Even Alyson, who tended to follow her brother, followed her lead in a sense when she was with them. She noticed that Gabe and she were the ringleaders of their friends. It wasn't a bad thing; they actually shared ideas. They had a good time every little get together they tended to have.

"What about some of the people that we know, but don't spend time with us?"

Jane sighed. "I never really liked Ben Cameron. Why Gabe hung out with him, I'll never understand. Tony Hogart will come around on his own; those two were good friends."

"And Juliette?"

Jane shook her head. "That girl really needs to wake up. I don't personally like what she's been doing; trust me I've seen what she's doing and it doesn't work out."

"You sympathize with her?"

"I sympathize with Manny." Jane said. "Manny had some issues when she was young. I met her and we clicked. She told me that she wanted a daughter and hoped and prayed that she would do the opposite of her in high school. I guess that history repeats itself."

Ronnie looked at her mother. "What is your honest opinion of Shane?"

Jane smiled. "If he had come by here before hanging out with your brother; I would have said no way. Now? I would give it a shot. The worst that happens is that you find out that you don't click and end up being friends."

"Does that actually work?" Ronnie looked at her mother skeptically.

Jane smiled as she put out the cigarette. "Ask your father."

"Really?"

"It did when I came back to take care of Grandma." Jane turned towards the door. "Look where we are now."

Ronnie smiled. "Thanks mom."

Jane smiled. "Anything else? I need to head into work."

"Do you mind if some of the girls come by?" Ronnie asked.

"Second opinion?" Jane asked. "No I don't mind. Just make sure that if Alyson comes by for her to smoke out here instead of out a window. Just cleanup after yourselves. Gabe will be back around dinnertime. I'll be home around the same time."

Ronnie got up and hugged her mom. Jane wished her a great day and left for work. Ronnie was glad that her mom would tell her the truth about everything; it was better than being lied to. She still felt that she needed a second opinion. She took out her phone and texted a message to her friends.

* * *

><p><em>Thank you guys for waiting for this chapter. I know that it seems a bit like filler. That's not the case:<em>

_You really have to look at Ronnie. Ronnie is the quiet and smart one. She's going to take an offer (much like Shane's) and look at it from every conceivable angle and really try to figure out all of the positives and negatives. She will then go to her parents, brother and friends and get their opinions. She'll then take everyone's advice and go from there. I don't totally agree with it, but it is how I wrote the character (that and an odd addiction to spray cheese in a can, but more on that in the next chapter). _

_As always; many thanks to those of you that keep reading this story. It really means a lot to me. I know that I say that a lot, but I really do appreciate it. Hopefully in the next few months I'll be able to post more than once a month. For the time being it's working and I'm a chapter ahead. _


	15. Girls of Autumn

_For those that have been patient; thank you. Here's your new chapter..._

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><p><strong>Chapter Fifteen: <strong>Girls of Autumn

Ronnie took off up the stairs and grabbed a quick shower. She headed into her room and got dressed into a casual top and jeans. She headed down to the kitchen and checked to see what they had for lunch. There were some leftovers, but she thought that they might not like what they had. She rummaged in her jeans and found a twenty. She smiled; maybe a pitch in for a pizza would work. She put a few more sodas in the fridge. She headed to the door as the doorbell went off. She opened the door and smiled.

"Ladies."

Alyson snickered. "God we're not that old. Girls would have worked."

Ronnie smiled. She noticed Gabe's girlfriend, as well and Emily Cameron, Nikki Coyne and Rosalyn Brooks. She was happy to see her friends.

"Come in, I've got the wine chilling."

"You didn't order a keg?" Alyson asked.

"Yeah, it's coming with the exotic dancers that I called." Emily said rolling her eyes. Rosalyn giggled at this.

"You're kidding right?" Nikki asked.

Ronnie smiled. "Yeah we are. I figured some girl time would be nice."

"I couldn't agree anymore." Emily commented. "If I have to listen to J.J. go on about wrestling one more time…"

"It's not that bad." Rosalyn smiled. "I like seeing those guys in those tights."

The girls sighed at the thought of this. Ronnie had to blush, thinking of Shane.

"Best looking guy on the team?" Nikki asked.

The girls headed into the living room and Ronnie shut the door.

"Tough call." Rosalyn stated. "I've met most of them."

"It has to suck a bit that your brother knows all of the jocks." Emily smiled.

"I've seen most of them at the house at one point or another." Rosalyn shrugged. "Jimmy's been trying to keep me from going after any of them."

"Boo." Nikki pouted. "That's no fun."

Rosalyn shrugged again. "I can't blame him though. Jocks tend to be on the dumber side of school."

"Hey!" Alyson mock growled. "My boyfriend is one of those guys!"

"He's one of the exceptions." Nikki commented. "Between Gabriel, J.J. and Edgar; most of them seem to be knuckle-draggers."

"Thank you!" Alyson smiled. "Someone that sees my guy other than a jock!"

"I still can't believe Edgar got on the team." Ronnie stated.

"I was more surprised that my dear cousin joined the team." Nikki replied. "He's not a violent type. Actually, he's more of the type to sit in with us."

"I think that was J.J.'s fault." Emily smiled. "Those two hang out so much and Coach Milligan just assumed that he was there to tryout." Emily snickered. "You should have seen the look on his face when Coach called him out to try."

"Ronnie; you and Alyson missed it." Rosalyn giggled. "Poor Eddie went out on the mats in socks, khakis and a t-shirt. He sized up his opponent and took him down in a matter of minutes. Everyone in the gym was impressed."

The girls shared a good laugh. Ronnie offered drinks to the girls; which they took. Nikki and Emily took off for the bathroom while Alyson stepped out for a moment. Rosalyn followed Ronnie to the kitchen.

"Hey are we good?" Rosalyn asked.

"Yeah, why?"

Rosalyn looked at her feet. "Well with Monday and everything…"

Ronnie looked at Rosalyn. "We've been friends for ten years Rose. Yeah, I was a little mad that I was being accused of what you heard. You could of just asked me."

"I didn't want to believe it, y'know." Rosalyn blushed. "I just thought that after that one argument we had in English."

Ronnie shook her head. "I took it personally. That was my fault and I'm sorry about that. You know how passionate I get about literature."

Rosalyn smiled. "Yeah, I was trying to egg you on. I'm sorry about that and not believing you about those comments."

"It's in the past." The two girls hugged. "Just next time, ask me."

Rosalyn smiled and nodded.

"Aw, did someone go and make up?" Alyson asked, coming in from the backyard.

Rosalyn rolled her eyes. "Yes. Thank you for the pep talk."

Alyson shrugged. "I thought that the two of you needed to talk about it. Besides, I had to wish my man good luck at the meet today."

"I'm surprised that you didn't go." Ronnie stated.

"No that's part of my punishment." Alyson grumbled. "I didn't get grounded but I can't see my man at any school functions this week. However, if he returns while we're here…"

"Lucky you." Rosalyn smiled.

"Okay, can we not talk about my brother like that?" Ronnie groaned.

Alyson nodded, looking at Rosalyn smiling. "You ever been kissed by a guy and felt fireworks go off in your head?"

"That good huh?" Rosalyn smiled back.

"EW!" Ronnie stated, shaking her head. "Ew. Ew. Ew."

Alyson and Rosalyn laughed out loud. Ronnie glared at the two of them. "You two are horrible, you know that?"

"Hey, what is said among the circle; stays in the circle." Rosalyn smiled.

"Speaking of which; Rose did I tell you what Gabe did…"

Ronnie huffed as she moved towards the sink. She grabbed the sprayer and pointed it at Alyson. "So help me if you finish that sentence Alyson."

Alyson let out a roar of laughter. She put her hands up in surrender. Rosalyn smiled.

"She's trying to get a rise out of you, Ronnie."

Ronnie sighed. She heard the other girls come into the kitchen.

"So who wants pizza?"

The girls spent most of the day talking and catching up with each other. Ronnie had to smile as she watched her friends laughing and gossiping with each other. She truly felt that she had some of the greatest friends in the world. Sadly, as time moved on during the day; her friends started to depart. It was when Alyson had left for the day that Ronnie had remembered what she wanted to ask the girls. She knew that Nikki would answer the question that had been plaguing her mind.

"So what's on your mind?" Nikki asked, shaking Ronnie out of her thoughts.

"If I ask you something, will you answer me honestly?"

Nikki smiled. "Of course you can. We're best friends aren't we?"

Ronnie nodded. She took a deep breath and sighed. She turned back to Nikki.

"Of course we're best friends; I wouldn't ask just anyone for advice." Ronnie smiled. "I just don't know what to do."

Nikki smiled. "I'll give you an honest answer. What's the problem?"

"Shane asked me out on Monday."

"You're afraid of what could happen?"

Ronnie blushed. "Among other things."

Nikki smiled. "Okay first and foremost; I don't think Shane is going to ask you to sleep with him. He doesn't take me as that type of person." Nikki continued, trying not to laugh. "Secondly, I have a feeling that Gabriel would put him down permanently if he hurt you."

Ronnie giggled at the second comment. Nikki continued.

"Finally, Shane has changed from when we met him at the beginning of the school year. I think he wants something serious."

"Why me though?" Ronnie moaned.

"Because he sees the awesomeness that is my best friend." Nikki smirked. "Besides, I'm a bit jealous of you."

"Jealous of me?"

Nikki nodded. "All of my friends are seeing someone or in the process of seeing someone. I would like to have someone to call mine."

Ronnie looked at Nikki sadly. "Why didn't you say anything to me? We would have found someone for you to go out with you."

It was Nikki's turn to blush. "I've already gone out with someone. Someone that was here today."

Ronnie looked at her friend in shock. "Who?"

"Rose and I have spent some time together. Sadly, Rose doesn't want anything serious." Nikki sighed, as if she was reminiscing. "Although it's nice to have someone for a casual moment or two."

"Wait, Rosalyn is a lesbian?" Ronnie asked.

Nikki nodded. "I'm surprised she didn't tell you."

"Must have slipped her mind." Ronnie grumbled. "Of course she did try to get an LBGT group formed in middle school." She sighed. "When did you two…?"

Nikki blushed. "A few times in the last month or two. I wanted to take things more seriously, but Rose wanted something more casual at this time." Nikki fidgeted a bit to a more comfortable sitting position. "Not that I'm complaining."

"See? This is the reason that I came to you." Ronnie exclaimed. "You're my best friend first and foremost. We have been able to talk about anything. Secondly, you're on both sides of the dating side of things." Ronnie threw her hands up in the air. "If anything; I'm living vicariously through you!"

Ronnie paced a bit, grumbling about the affairs of her friends. She ended up in the kitchen and pulled out a can of Easy Cheese. She sat on the kitchen counter cross-legged and opened the can; spraying in a decent amount into her mouth. She swallowed and shuddered only to do the same thing again.

Nikki tilted her head and moved towards her best friend. "What in the world are you doing?"

Ronnie shook the can and took another shot of cheese. "When I get annoyed with myself or upset I would grab a can of this stuff and crackers and have some until I could calm down. After some time, I discovered that the cheese stuff wasn't too bad alone." Ronnie sighed as she took one more shot. "I'm sorry that you have to see me like this."

Nikki softly laughed. "I'm not. I get to see my best friend actually being honest with me."

"Glad I can entertain you." Ronnie smiled weakly. "I've known since that first weekend that you were playing both teams. I remember you letting that slip. Why Rosalyn didn't tell me is a surprise. It makes sense that she'd keep that secret. I guess that's the reason that she's been agreeing with us." She tossed the spray can in her hands as she continued. "I guess that I've been kicking these thoughts around in my head for some time now."

"What's that?"

Ronnie capped the spray cheese can and put it down. "Truth? I've been thinking about my sexuality for some time now. I'm flattered that Shane asked me out. He really has changed from when I first met him. I just don't think that I have the same feelings for him that he may have for me."

"So you're thinking of telling him no?"

Ronnie shook her head. "I would give it a shot." She hopped down from the counter and took a seat. "He's nice to look at and he's somewhat smart. But then I look around at the girls that were here today. I sat there and while we're talking about boys and clothes; I'm having a internal monologue with myself about who's the hottest girl here." She looked at Nikki. "You were tied with Alyson at the top."

"I tied with Alyson?" Nikki looked at Ronnie with mild interest. "I figured that I would have come out on top of that."

"Only because you both have qualities that I find admirable." Ronnie nodded. "Alyson is how I want to be about things; she's carefree and a rebel. She rocks an awesome outfit with her fashion sense. She's got a no-nonsense attitude about life. She takes things day by day." She smiled. "You're gorgeous; like movie star gorgeous. While the physical is great; you are a mental challenge to me. I find intelligence a very sexy quality. You're also brutally honest and sophisticated. You're there for me when I really need someone. You are what I would want in an honest relationship. Shane and Alyson just wouldn't provide that. Well, they could in time."

Nikki blushed and smiled. "Thank you." Ronnie replied with a shrug and a smile. "I have to ask; why are you saying all of this now, let alone to me?"

"I don't know." Ronnie shrugged again. "When I talked to my mom earlier today about dating, she just gave me her comments about Shane. I almost told her, but I chickened out at the last second." She looked down at her hands. "I guess I wasn't really ready to tell her."

Nikki took the seat next to her and looked in Ronnie's direction. "It wasn't easy for me at first. I told my mom about where I was sexually at age eleven. She was fine with it; so was Imogen, you know Ms. Moreno." Ronnie looked towards Nikki and nodded for her to continue. "When I told Adam and Dad they were fine with it. Dad was real supportive; especially coming from the way I was raised. I had four people with different backgrounds raising me that gave me all that I needed; they still do."

"It was your Aunt's family, wasn't it?" Ronnie asked.

Nikki nodded, a tear rolling down her cheek. "Auntie J and Uncle Declan were fine with it. They loved me like their own. Aunt Heather and her family? They were just vicious. I was an abomination in their eyes; unwed lesbian mother gets artificially pregnant by her closest guy friend. To make matters worse; I'm then raised by said mom and dad and mom's partner and Toronto's most famous DJ and shock jock." Nikki laughed shallowly. "I was the messed up one, but everyone sided with mom. It was kind of nice to know that."

"Except Elizabeth." Ronnie spoke meekly.

"Yes, my darling cousin that's the black sheep." Nikki grumbled. "She thinks that my aunt Heather farts unicorns and shits rainbows. Yet she calls me fucked up."

"At least I gave her a black eye when I hit her." Ronnie smiled.

Nikki covered her mouth. "Granted; the one good thing that comes out of that fight is that she looks like a raccoon with the broken nose."

The two girls sat and laughed for a few minutes. When the laughter died down, there was a comfortable silence between the two.

"Veronica; go out on the date with Shane."

Ronnie looked at Nikki. "What do you mean?"

Nikki nodded. "He did ask you out and you did say yes to the date. You have to honor this first date with him."

"But…" Nikki placed a finger on Ronnie's lips. Ronnie closed her eyes and sighed.

"I'm flattered and you're my best friend. I'm content with that for the time being. Go out on the date with Shane. Have a great time and have fun. If things don't work out for you two, I'll be sad about it. However, if you want to pursue us; then we'll get to that bridge in time."

Ronnie nodded. The two friends hugged each other. Ronnie was reluctant to let go, but did so when Nikki's phone chimed.

"Great timing." Ronnie grumbled.

"That's my ride." Nikki smiled. "Just go with my suggestion with Shane. Go have fun and yes I want details." Nikki picked up her purse and went to put her shoes on. She turned to Ronnie, who really looked upset and smiled. "I'm your best friend. Remember that."

"Yeah I know. I wouldn't want to ruin that."

Nikki smiled. "At least at the moment." She hugged her friend again. "Love you."

"Love you too Nikki."

Nikki walked out the front door and closed it behind her. She walked towards the car and noticed Gabe getting out. Her smile brightened as he held the door open for her.

"Milady, your chariot awaits."

Nikki laughed. "Charming as always Gabriel. I take it things went well."

Gabe smiled. "Oh yeah. Degrassi is going to have the team to beat this year. I did pretty well, but your cousin's one bad dude."

"Really?"

"Come on Gabe; don't brag about me." Edgar chimed from inside the car.

"Sorry dude, you were a badass taking that guy down as quick as you did." Gabe smiled. "Sorry I'm holding you guys up. Did you all have a fun time?"

"Yes we did and no I won't share what Alyson said about you."

"Party pooper." Gabe smiled. "Well you two have a good night and I'm sure we'll see each other before Monday."

Nikki stepped closer to Gabe and kissed him on the cheek. "Talk to Ronnie when you can. I really think she needs her big brother right now." She got in the car and closed the door, not answering any more questions. The car left the Mason home and Nikki watched as the elder Mason waved as they left.

"He has a girlfriend." Edgar chimed in. Nikki turned to him as Gabe was out of sight. Edgar sat with his arms crossed and glanced at his cousin.

"A girl can dream, can't she?" Nikki smiled. "I think the two of them and me…"

"Way too much of a mental picture there." Edgar shifted in his seat. "Besides wouldn't that be incest with them in the same room at the same time?"

"I suppose you're right. Again a girl can dream."

"Did she finally tell you?" Edgar asked after a moment.

Nikki handed Edgar a bill and smiled. "You were right. She's been in conflict for some time. She likes Shane, but I think she likes me a little more."

Edgar smiled. "I told you that this would happen."

Nikki glared. "Oh you're so smug about this. Why didn't you say anything?"

"I truly believe that having a woman to talk about these things is easier." Edgar stretched. "Besides I think it would have been weird if I said something to her about it."

"That may be true." Nikki said thoughtfully. "We play on both sides of fence dear cousin. It might make it easier from a guy's point of view."

Edgar shrugged. "One thing at a time dear Nicolette. I have a feeling that she'll talk to her brother about this."

"He'll be very understanding."

"I would think so." Edgar smiled. "It's one of his more endearing qualities."

"He has a girlfriend." Nikki gloated. It was Edgar's turn to glare at her. "What? Your words and not mine. I'm just stating for the record."

Edgar shook his head and looked out the window while Nikki looked in her purse for her phone. They both sighed at the same time.

"So did you enjoy rolling around on the mats with those big sweaty men?" Nikki flashed a cheesy smile. Edgar merely shook his head and rolled his eyes as the car continued towards home.

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><p><em>Pretty interesting chapter. Yet so many questions...<em>

_I've been kicking this chapter around for some time now. It's probably as close to perfect as I'll ever get it. I'll try to explain some of this here today (although I appreciate commentary from you guys as well). _

_-Rosalyn keeping the fact of being lesbian to a few people is not known at this time. It will come to light on the reasons why later on in the story. _

_-Yes, Nikki is bisexual; as well is Edgar. Edgar will keep this fact to himself; he feels that it is his business alone. Edgar likes girls/women more so, but as he put it to me; likes to keep his options open. Nikki is a little more open about it; partially due to the fact in the way that she was raised (see above). She also feels that it's time that some of her friends did know about it; something that Ronnie also picked in a previous (albeit off-scene) conversation. I also chose Nikki and Edgar to be this way not to get readers, but I feel it's an issue that really wasn't covered fully in the series (I'm aware that Paige tests the waters on both sides, but I'd like to delve more than what was covered there). _

_-Keep in mind; Ronnie is QUESTIONING at this time. It is something I've had planned for a while with her character. Remember that this is a story based around the Mason children. The other kids that are around are used as either plot points or to progress the story. Yes, I still like them too; so they are involved in Gabriel and Veronica's lives. _

_-The conversation in the car between the cousins isn't intended to show them in a bad light. They are close as family can be, but remember they're VERY observant teenagers. Rich, observant teenagers. They will gossip like other kids, but will do silly things like betting on conversations and the like. It wasn't meant to make them sinister, just different. _

_So thank you guys for reading! Please feel free to comment and ask questions. I'll do my best to answer them honestly (unless I have a reason to tell you, but I'll warn you ahead of time). I'll have the next chapter up fairly soon; hopefully near the end of the month instead of in May. Thanks!_


	16. We Talk Too Much

_Here is the new chapter._

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><p><strong>Chapter Sixteen: <strong>We Talk Too Much

Gabe watched the car disappear around a corner and headed towards the front door. He let himself in and kicked off his shoes. He placed them and his hoodie in the closet. He walked towards the kitchen and to the laundry area. He dumped his uniform and bag in the washer and set it to wash.

"Ronnie? Where are you?"

He heard a sniff from the living room and Ronnie's voice a moment later. "Right here."

Gabe nodded. He headed back into the kitchen and grabbed some juice. He looked in the fridge for something to eat. He shut the door and noticed the pizza boxes on the oven.

"All right! Pizza!"

Ronnie's head poked up from behind the arm of the couch. "Don't eat all of it. Mom said to save some for dinner."

Gabe snorted. "There are leftovers; we'll be fine."

Ronnie's smaller form jumped up from the couch and moved quickly to the kitchen. She walked up behind her brother, grabbed his left earlobe and twisted it. "Gabriel Joseph; I'm serious! Do not eat ALL of the pizza!"

Gabe pulled his head out of the vice grip of his sister's hand and yelled. "Ow! What is your fucking malfunction?!"

Ronnie pushed her glasses up her nose and glared at her brother. Gabe rubbed his ear.

"I said don't eat all of it."

"Okay; I heard you the first time." Gabe seethed. "Now I know where you get that from. Mom does that look to me when I get in trouble."

"Well I told you…"

"Yeah, I got it. Fuck." Gabe growled. "Have a fight with one of the girls?"

Ronnie sulked as she took a seat at the kitchen island. "No, we had a great time. Alyson smokes way too much." Gabe looked at his sister in confusion. "It seemed like she was out there like every half an hour."

Gabe shook his head. "Believe it or not; that's cutting down for her." He took a glass and poured some juice in it; handing it to Ronnie. "I've got to give her credit; she trying to cut down. That's got to be hard for her."

"That's cutting down?"

"She told me that she used to do like a pack a day." Gabe nodded, taking a bite of his slice of pizza. "She doesn't even light up around me."

"You're kidding?"

"I'm not. Alyson said that it's not fair for me that doesn't smoke to continue to kiss an ashtray. Mrs. Manning joked that I should move in. She said that it would get her to quit altogether. Mr. Manning didn't laugh."

"What did you do to him?" Ronnie smirked.

"Something about dating his daughter." Gabe shrugged. "He's getting a little better about it now. He's actually a pretty cool teacher."

Ronnie nodded. "So how did the meet go?"

"Leaving the pizza alone now." Gabe took out some leftovers from the fridge and heated them up. "Not too bad actually. I won against my first opponent and ended up as a draw for the second."

"Two?"

"Bardell has two guys that are in the same weight class." Gabe stated. "Twins nonetheless, which was a bit weird. Pinned the first brother within time limit. The second brother was a little faster and we just ran out of time. It was kind of cool."

"Sounds serious." Ronnie smiled.

"I didn't think I would have liked it myself." Gabe opened the microwave and stirred the leftovers; putting it back in the micro and hitting start again. "It's great exercise and you have to plan on your feet on what to do next. I'm learning a lot in a short amount of time."

"How did the others do?" Ronnie glanced at the microwave, looking to see what it was.

"Leftover pasta from the other night. You want some?" Ronnie nodded. Gabe took out another fork for her. Gabe took the food out of the micro, gave it a quick stir and put it down between them. "Well J.J. took a loss, but he fought until the last thirty seconds. He got dropped on his back about halfway in; knocked the wind out of him. Kept up a good fight for a while though. Shane did well; he won against his opponent. Edgar is the one to watch though."

"Why do you say that?" Ronnie covered her mouth to make sure that one of the noodles didn't drop to the floor.

"Classy." Gabe smiled. "Edgar had the guy off of his feet and pinned in like two minutes. He's just a flash of motion. It was so quick."

Ronnie nodded. "He's pretty fast for someone his size." She took another forkful of pasta. "So did you enjoy rolling around with sweaty guys on gym mats?"

Gabe started coughing loudly. He took a good drink from his glass and put it down. He looked at his sister in surprise. Ronnie for her benefit; merely looked back at him innocently.

"Did I say something wrong?"

"You're evil, you know that?" Ronnie continued to look at him innocently. Gabe merely shook his head and took another bite. "Did you have a good time with the girls over?"

"You asked me that already."

Gabe shrugged. "I'm just saying. It's strange to hear you crying after having a good day."

It was Ronnie's turn to look at her brother in shock. Gabe merely took another forkful of noodles and chewed.

"How did you know I was crying?"

"You just went ahead and told me." He pointed at her as he spoke. Ronnie could only glare at him. He looked up from the container. "You want to talk about it?"

"Not really." Gabe shrugged as he mentally counted to five. "So can I ask you a question? And don't give me any crap about 'you just did, ha-ha'." Gabe motioned for her to continue. "So I'm up in the air about something."

"The date with Shane?"

"Are you psychic?" Ronnie looked at him, to which Gabe shook his head. "I like Shane; he's handsome, funny and athletic."

"There's someone else?"

Ronnie glared at her brother. "Stop that." Gabe merely shrugged. "Yeah there kind of is someone else."

"Does this someone else know about your feelings for them?"

Ronnie nodded. "Yeah I told her today."

"Her?" Gabe's eyebrows rose slightly. "You're playing both sides of the fence?"

"Yes I think so."

"You think so?"

Ronnie rolled her eyes. "Yes Gabriel, I think that I'm bisexual." She watched her brother; who really didn't react too much to her comment. "Well?"

"Well what?"

"Well aren't you going to say something? No smart comments?"

Gabe put the fork down. "What should I say? I could be a jerk and say that's its immoral and what not. You know I won't though. Both mom and dad would kill me; they raised us not to think like that."

"You really feel that way about it?"

Gabe looked at his sister, slightly hurt. "That hurts. You know that I don't feel that way."

Ronnie shrugged, raising her voice. "Well how do I know? You're so God damn nonchalant about me telling you I might be playing both sides of the fence…"

"I have no problem with it." Gabe smiled. "If that's who you are, then I accept it. I wouldn't care if you told me anything from I'm gay to I only have sex with animals. I would accept it because you're my sister."

Ronnie walked over to her brother and gave him a big hug; in which he returned. He lifted his sister off the ground, causing Ronnie to laugh out loud. He put his sister back on the ground and smiled.

"Why were you so worried about telling me?" Gabe asked.

"I don't know, it just felt weird to talk to you about this." Ronnie sighed. She turned to him with a small smirk on her face. "Sex with animals?"

Gabe shrugged. "It was the only thing I could come up with on short notice." Ronnie shook her head. The two siblings picked at the remaining leftovers, leaving a curious silence between the two of them. Gabe looked over to his sister.

"So how long have you been kicking this around in your head?"

Ronnie looked back at the leftovers and shrugged. "I'm not too sure." She took a forkful and chewed on it for a moment before speaking. "Do you remember when Scott left to go to California?"

"Your first boyfriend, yeah I remember."

"He was not a boyfriend!"

Gabe chuckled. "You went to the park on your own and he bought you ice cream. You did this several times before he moved. You kissed him a few times. Yes Veronica; that's considered a date, or in your case dates."

"I was twelve!" Ronnie exclaimed.

"Most pre-teens and teens are dating by eleven nowadays." Gabe pointed out. "We're late bloomers Ronnie. I know that some of the girls in our school are sexually active by the time they're about your age right now."

"Anyway," Ronnie said a little too forcefully. "I began noticing that girls started looking attractive to me as well. It was simple things at first; the way a certain top was worn, a specific perfume on different persons. It was small things like that ended up being a turn on for me. Those small things; in a scientific aspect made sense to me. We as people crave a certain combination of pheromones to find a specific mate. I guess I noticed that from both sexes."

"For you, that makes perfect sense." Gabe smiled. "Only you can justify how you feel in a scientific rationale. I guess my question is how did you keep something like this to yourself for so long? I mean, why bring it up now?"

"I guess that's the sixty-four thousand dollar question." Ronnie pondered. "I guess that I've spent so much time trying to figure out if it was right to have those feelings or not. I can only guess that my mind is okay with it now. The rest of me is trying to play catch up."

"May I present a theory?" Gabe asked, scratching his chin. "You stated that you talked to one of the girls about this. Could that girl be the one that left last? If so, maybe she was a catalyst to renewing those feelings? Maybe even reigniting and bringing them to the forefront and making things more difficult than they were?"

Ronnie smiled and blushed at the same time. "Only you can pose my concerns in a scientific manner."

"Hey you do what you have to do to get to the root of the issue. Blame mom for making us watch all of those science shows when we were growing up." Gabe took the last of the pasta and ate it. He took the container and forks and washed them in the sink.

"So what do you propose I do?"

"I think it's a simple answer." Gabe stated, drying off the kitchenware. "You go out on a date with each person. When both dates are completed, you go over each of them and answer truthfully how each date went. Add in the factors of how you felt on them and the experience and go from there."

"That's really insightful Gabriel."

Gabe shrugged. "I have my moments. Ronnie; even though I'm posing answering your question in a scientific way, don't go about this in that manner. Nikki and Shane are human beings and treating them like lab rats isn't really going to go over very well."

"Gabriel, I wouldn't…"

Gabe put his hands up in defense. "I'm just making sure sis."

They sat in a comfortable silence for a moment or two before Ronnie spoke up again.

"When should I talk to mom and dad about what we've talked about?"

"Do it at dinner. It's the only time where we'll all be together for a while." Gabe smiled. "Besides I'll have your back."

Ronnie nodded and agreed to this. Gabe shuffled up the stairs and took a shower. Ronnie ended up doing a little cleaning in the kitchen during that time. When Gabe came downstairs again, Spinner had just made it home and Jane wasn't too far behind. They had washed up for dinner and sat down together for a family dinner. The four had talked about their respective days. It was at this point that Ronnie had taken a deep sigh and looked at her brother. Gabe nodded his head and smiled to encourage her to talk about it. She stood up and cleared her throat.

"Mom, dad; I need to talk to you about something serious…"

* * *

><p><em>We leave our characters to handle this amongst themselves. <em>

_So what did you think? Did it seem realistic of a conversation to you? I know that when I was working on this; it sounded eeriely similar to a conversation that I had with a fellow geek many years ago. I guess that it's funny how sometimes real life ends up in my story. It's funny to say that the truth may be stranger than fiction. In reality; it may be._

_I've actually been sitting on this for the last few days. Between work and family time (spent at C2E2; which if you live in the Chicago area, I totally recommend), I'd forgotten that I had the rough draft on here. It should have been posted a few days ago, but it keeps up with my once a month policy. I'm planning on the next part of the story to be in two parts, but that may change as I see fit. It will be interesting to say the least. _

_Thanks go out to you my faithful readers that follow this story and me! I love that you guys keep reading this with the updates being so far and between. Thanks also go out to those of you that have read the story and just leave it at that. Apparently I'm doing okay, so thanks!_

_Coming up: Ronnie's date with Shane; let Chaos reign!_


	17. This Friday Night

_New chapter is up and ready to go! WARNING: explicit language and mature content in this chapter!_

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><p><strong>Chapter Seventeen: <strong>This Friday Night

Friday night came too quickly for Ronnie. She spoke with her family about being bi-curious; which they took in stride. While they talked about it, Ronnie watched her brother's reactions. While there weren't any reactions that were dead giveaways, she knew that they would talk again. She went to bed that night content and got up the next morning ready for work. She worked hostess at the restaurant for most of the day. Her cover came in closer to four, along with her brother. She wanted to talk to him, but Gabe reminded her of her date that night. Ronnie headed home and jumped in the shower.

She got out of the shower; towel wrapped around her and was at a loss for what to wear. She looked in her closet and couldn't find anything that looked good for her. She pondered her choices when her phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Hey pretty lady."

Ronnie smiled. "Hey Shane; don't tell me that you're calling to cancel?"

Shane laughed. "I would never think of doing such a thing. I was just calling to let you know that I would be over in about half an hour. That's unless you need a little more time to get ready?"

Ronnie looked at the clock and noticed that it was already five-thirty. "No, that should be fine. Just wondering what I should wear tonight."

"Something slutty?"

"Seriously Shane!" Ronnie nervously laughed.

She heard him laughing on the other end. "No Veronica I'm kidding. I've got a plan, so think casual to business casual."

Ronnie sighed in relief. "Really? Is that the only reason that you called?"

"We'll have a good time. Trust me; it's just the two of us. You don't have to be nervous." Shane commented. "I really called to say that I would be early. If I helped with your wardrobe choice; then cool. Although…"

"I don't have any slutty clothes." Ronnie giggled.

"I didn't think so." Shane chuckled. "I'll see you in half an hour."

They said their goodbyes and Ronnie headed to the closet again. She smiled as she found the outfit for the night…

_Time passes…_

Jane was cleaning up in the kitchen when the doorbell rang. She looked up and smiled as she went to the door. She looked through the peephole and noticed a well groomed Shane Milligan. She turned from the door and spoke up the stairs.

"Ronnie; Shane's here for you."

"Thanks mom; I'll be right down."

Jane turned back to the door and opened it.

"Evening Mrs. Mason. I was wondering if Veronica was ready for our date this evening."

Jane stood away from the door and let Shane in. She closed the door once he was in the foyer. She had to smile that Shane had actually cleaned up quite well. Shane dressed in a pair of dark brown khakis, a navy blue polo with a leather jacket. He had even brought flowers for Ronnie. If he was trying to make a good first impression; he had succeeded.

"Ronnie's almost done. I think she was putting on the last of her makeup."

"Thank you Mrs. Mason." He sat down on the couch and waited for Ronnie to come down the stairs. He didn't wait more than five minutes when footsteps were heard from the stairway. He got up and watched his date walk down the stairs.

Ronnie had listened to what Shane suggested. She walked down the stairs in a pair of flats, a knee length tan skirt and a white blouse. Her hair was down, slightly curly and she wasn't wearing her glasses.

"Absolutely stunning Ms. Mason. Decided to say no to the glasses?"

Ronnie blushed. "Contacts Shane; I don't like wearing them very often."

"I figured. We're so used to seeing you in those wire-frames." Shane smiled. "It's a very welcome change."

"You should feel honored Shane, Veronica only wears contacts on special occasions." Jane chimed in. "She must feel that this is a very special occasion."

"Mom…"

Shane smiled. "I can understand her point of view." He looked at Ronnie. "Thank you for thinking this as a special occasion." Ronnie blushed again as Shane turned to Jane. "What time would you like me to have Veronica home?"

Jane smiled, blushing a bit herself. "No later than midnight; I would like to talk to her some tonight as well."

"Of course, I will have her home just before then." Shane nodded. He handed the flowers to Ronnie. "I hope you like them."

"Carnations and Baby's Breath; very interesting combination Mr. Milligan." Ronnie observed, taking the bouquet from him. "I'll just put them in some water."

Jane took them from her daughter. "I'll take care of this Ronnie. You go ahead and have a great night out." Jane smiled at the flowers as she put them in a vase in the kitchen. Shane held the door for Ronnie as they left for the night.

They walked down the path to the curb where Shane had parked his car. He opened the door for Ronnie and she took a seat. Shane made sure that she was in before closing the door. Ronnie noticed that Shane's door was locked, so she unlocked it for him.

Shane opened the door. "Thanks Ronnie. For some strange reason; the lock on this door always slides and locks." He got in the car and closed the door. He started the car and put his seat belt on; checking all of the mirrors at the same time.

"Nice car."

"Thanks." Shane smiled. "I'll have to let dad know, it's his."

"I thought you had your own?"

Shane laughed. "I do, but dad wanted to borrow it. He's taking mom out tonight."

Ronnie nodded. "So what are the plans for tonight?"

"Well I had a few ideas." Shane kept his eyes on the road while he spoke. "I was thinking dinner first."

"I'm not really that hungry right now." Ronnie commented, but her stomach betrayed her. Shane looked over and laughed. "I think someone protest the truth."

"I'm starving." Ronnie groaned. "We were so busy today! I barely got anything to eat on my break."

"I can guess." Shane commented. "Your dad's place is almost always busy."

"I don't know how he does it." Ronnie commented. "He works in the kitchen and still has time to do all of the orders and keep everyone in that place in line."

"Your dad's a good guy." Shane smiled. "He does all of that for his family."

Ronnie smiled. "I know that. He's a great dad. He's always made time for Mom, Gabe and me. He's done a lot for us."

"Sounds like my old man." Shane smiled.

"How are things going with your parents?"

Shane sighed. "Going a hell of a lot better than it has in years. I think things will actually work out this time and for the better."

"Does it have anything to do with the scar on your left arm?" Ronnie asked meekly. Shane looked over at her in surprise. "I'm sorry if I brought up a bad point; nevermind."

"No, it's cool. I usually hide it from most people." He glanced over at Ronnie. "How did you notice it?"

Ronnie blushed. "I noticed in on Monday, when you were trying to keep Alyson from tearing Juliette's head from her body."

Shane laughed. "Yeah that was all kinds of hot."

"Shane!" Ronnie laughed. Shane smiled at her.

"Oh come on. I may be a gentleman, but I'm a guy!" Shane smiled at her. "What guy wouldn't be amused or be slightly excited about that day?"

"Good point." Ronnie mused. "I guess you're right."

Shane parked the car. He took the keys out of the ignition and got out; opening the door for Ronnie to get out. They headed into a diner that Ronnie had never been in. They walked in the restaurant and found a seat near the back. They looked over the menus and ordered.

"So to get back to your question…"

"Shane you don't have to…"

Shane shook his head. "I have no problem talking about it now. Besides you did ask and I feel that I can tell you anything."

Ronnie blushed and smiled as Shane continued. "You may remember me saying to Gabe that I have a strong dislike for those that use and abuse drugs?"

Ronnie nodded. "I remember you mentioned it once or twice. You're not like Gabe though."

"No not at all." Shane took a drink from his soda. "I have nothing against Gabe and the straight edge lifestyle at all. I do happen to partake of a beer or two every now and then. I have something against those that abuse drugs."

Ronnie nodded for Shane to continue. "My parents didn't get married when I came along. Mom was really devoted to the Army. She took care of me for the first three years or so, but decided that service was more important. So she left me in my dad's protection and took off."

"That sucks." Ronnie looked at him sympathetically.

"It wasn't all that bad actually. Dad and I have always been close. I'm also close to my uncle Tristan and some of his friends. I was raised by a small village."

"That's kind of cool."

Shane nodded. "Dad and Tristan were my blood family. I had my aunt Tori and aunt Maya to help out as well. I had good people to raise me to respect not only men and women, but alternative lifestyles as well." Ronnie looked at Shane quizzically. "My uncle is gay and my aunt Tori is bi."

"Tristan Milligan the soap star is your uncle?"

Shane nodded. "Guilty as charged."

"But he's…"

"…one hell of an actor." Shane finished her though. "He's played it off for a long time. He just recently came out publicly." Shane shook his head. "Sorry off tangent; so they raised me for a long time. Needless to say, mom wanted back in the picture when I was about ten or so. So dad and mom worked out arrangements for me to go on base two weekends a month and for about two weeks over the summer."

"How long did that work out?"

"Would you believe that it worked for a while? Yeah, it worked for about six months or so. Mom was in training for officers' school and was really busy a lot of the time. Most of the time I would hang out in the Motorpool and talk to the mechanics. I learned a lot about cars and how to fix them."

"How does this explain the scar?"

"I'm getting there Ronnie; patience dear." Ronnie smiled as Shane continued. "So at one point, I got busted and had to stay in my mom's quarters. Mom didn't have a lot of things to do for a ten year old boy. So I went digging through her stuff. She came back and stated that she needed a nap and not to disturb her. She went to her bathroom and took out some kind of sleep aid or something, took a few of them and went to sleep."

Shane took a drink from his water and continued. "What I didn't know at the time was mom was taking a lot of those pills. She wasn't getting a lot of sleep and they tended to help her. So like I said, I was rummaging and found a field knife that she had from basic."

"Oh no, you played with it?"

Shane shrugged. "I know now that it wasn't the brightest of moves. I was ten. So I get to playing around and goofing off in my own world when the doorbell rings. Scared the hell out of me starting a swing and I sliced my arm; deeply might I add."

"Oh god, that's serious." Ronnie gasped.

"Yeah it sucked. I go to the door and answer. Some corpsman was there for mom and panicked when they saw my arm. They took me to the infirmary and stitched up my arm. They tried to wake up mom, but to no avail."

Dinner had arrived and they had small talk during the meal. Shane had paid for the meal and they left the diner. Shane had suggested that they go see a movie; which Ronnie had no objections. They ended up in a small art house theater; watching a foreign film that Ronnie hadn't seen before. Shane stated that he'd seen it before that and knew that Ronnie would like it. Ronnie not only liked it, but loved the movie. They had walked out at the end and decided to take a walk in the nearby park.

The couple were quiet during their walk. Ronnie had to admit that she was enjoying herself immensely. She looked over at Shane; he seemed to be smiling to himself as well.

"So not to be a downer, but you never finished you story at dinner." Ronnie commented.

Shane sighed. "You know? You're right." They found a bench and took a seat. "So they ended up calling out dad to the base. I was stitched up and waiting for a parent. In the meantime they have some on-base shrink asking me a million questions."

Ronnie nodded. "They thought you were trying to kill yourself."

"Can you believe it?" Shane shook his head. "I tried to explain what I was doing…"

"I know that you weren't Shane. You're not that type of person. So what happened?"

Shane nodded. "So they were trying wake mom. They finally get her up after my dad shows up. An hour after my dad showed up. Mom shows up and dad lets her and the shrink have it. The military tries to explain that I'm suicidal. Dad explains that I'm bored. In the end; the shrink leaves and then it starts."

"Dad tore into mom. He finds out that mom's been using sleeping pills and has a fit. He said something about mom having a coke habit when she was younger. I wasn't aware of that at all. Mom admitted it and I made it a point to stay away. I started going back about two years ago. I was only staying one weekend a month and three weeks in the summer. She was trying, but I felt that the damage was done."

"That was until recently?"

Shane nodded. "Monday we got all of our feelings on the table. Mom's still an officer, but is working more locally. She wants to be more involved in my life. Besides, dad still loves her and I want him to be happy. In the end, I guess that things will start working out for us."

Ronnie smiled as they found a bench. They both sighed in contentment. Ronnie turned to Shane and moved a bit closer to him.

"I wanted to thank you for tonight. I really had a great time."

Shane nodded. "I should be thanking you. If it wasn't for our little talk on Monday, I wouldn't have my folks together again."

Ronnie blushed slightly. She looked at Shane and as if on instinct; she leaned over and kissed him. He responded in kind and the two kissed a couple of times before Ronnie broke contact. She smiled and looked at her date; happy that she got to kiss him. Somewhere in the back of Ronnie's brain; something didn't feel right about this.

"I wasn't expecting that." Shane looked at her surprised.

"You weren't? I just felt that I should…"

"Ronnie; just because we're out on a date doesn't mean I want anything serious right now. Trust me, I'm just not ready for a relationship right now."

"You just want sex then?"

Shane looked at her surprised, but smiled back at her. "Tempting as an offer as that is; no I don't. I wanted to take you out and thank you for just being awesome to me."

Ronnie sighed in relief. "Oh thank God."

"Was it that bad of a kiss?" Shane chuckled.

Ronnie looked at him horrified. "No! Definitely not!" She fidgeted on the bench. "I was just… I was embarrassed to tell you something…"

"Well, this should be interesting." Shane put all of his attention to her. "I have to hear this now." Ronnie was about to protest, but Shane stopped her. "Keep in mind that I spent a good part of the evening explaining something that I keep hidden. Now it's your turn."

Ronnie sighed but nodded in agreement with Shane. Ronnie spent the better part of an hour explaining to Shane what had happened on Thursday as well as what she had gone through up to that point. She told him everything from growing up to being picked on to dating to being bi-curious. When she was done; she was on the verge of tears, but felt like a giant weight was off of her shoulders. She had turned to Shane and expected him to be angry; all he did was smile at her.

"Well that wasn't so hard; now was it?" Shane chuckled.

"I'm so sorry. I just felt like I could tell you everything and not be judged."

"Nor would I judge you." Shane placed a hand on Ronnie's shoulder. "I'm glad that you could share that with me."

Ronnie smiled at him. "So where does that leave us?"

Shane nodded at her. "Well I'll tell you what I'm thinking. I think that for the time being; we continue to be friends. Let's see how things are looking in the next couple of months and go from there." Shane pulled Ronnie into a hug. "I think we both have some things to work out for ourselves here."

"I don't want you to wait for me." Ronnie said, breaking the hug. "I feel that would be unfair to you."

Shane chuckled. "I'm not going to wait. If we're single in a few months, then we'll talk and try dating. If one of us is spoken for, then we'll wish each other the best."

Ronnie merely nodded at Shane. She felt somewhat bad about the situation, but understood that times waits for no one. Shane offered to drive Ronnie home and they headed back to the car. They talked about small stuff until they got to the Mason home. Shane got out and walked Ronnie to the door. They said their goodnights and Ronnie kissed Shane on the cheek; thanking him for a wonderful night.

Ronnie let her parents know that she was home. They asked her about her night; to which she replied that she had a great time. When pressed about the two of them dating, Ronnie merely stated that at the current time; they would just be friends. Ronnie wished them a good night and headed up to her room. She wanted to talk to Gabe, but found him asleep. She took a shower and went to bed; content in her talk with Shane and quickly fell asleep.

_Meanwhile…_

Shane walked back to the car. He got in and sat down; pulling out his phone and sending off a quick text. He got a reply and smiled. He started the car up and left; heading out into the night. Shane drove for twenty minutes into the heart of Toronto's upper class neighborhoods and pulled into a driveway to a house that seemed alive with activity. He locked up his car and went to the trunk; pulling out a dufflebag. He walked up to the doorway and knocked on the door. He could hear the chatter of people and music coming from the stereo.

"Hey man, you're late." Jimmy Brooks Jr. smiled as he handed Shane a beer.

"You know me, had to get the princess back to the castle before midnight." Shane chuckled, taking a long drink from the bottle. "Had a decent date with her though. Are the parentals gone?"

"Yeah they're out of town for the weekend. That's the reason that we've still got a party going on man." Jimmy led Shane to a guest bedroom. He opened the door and Shane tossed his bag into the room. "I told Rosalyn to split, but she's up in her room screwing some girl."

"That dark-haired Coyne girl?" Shane asked, leaving the room.

Jimmy shook his head. "Nah, she's messing with some dyke that Ogre brought with him." He closed the door and the two headed to the kitchen.

Shane noticed some of the other jocks on their way. He saw Ogre in a chair with a three girls around him; the girls taking in his every word. Shane nodded when Ogre looked up and received a grin back. Shane stopped in the doorway of the den. He watched as Edgar was leaning up against the fireplace talking to some freshman girl. He noticed J.J. Hogart at a card table playing strip poker with two other girls and winning that particular hand.

Jimmy came back to Shane and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Surprised that those two are here?"

Shane smiled. "No I'm surprised that they're fitting in so well." Shane followed Jimmy to the kitchen. They stopped at the kitchen island and continued to talk.

"So how'd it go?"

Shane shrugged. "It was alright. We had a pretty good time."

"But?"

Shane took another sip of the bottle. He went on to Jimmy about what they did and the talk in the park. He spoke about her kissing him, but then delving into her sexuality. Shane finished up with dropping her off and showing up at the party.

Jimmy laughed. "Man; isn't that the fucking luck?"

Shane smirked. "Yeah man; my fucking luck." Shane hid the slight twinge of guilt and continued. "It was Gabe's idea in the first place."

"Yeah well that's Mister goody two-shoes for you." Jimmy took a long drink from his beer. "Too bad he's not here."

"Yeah well there's drinking involved." Shane felt another twinge. "Gabe's decent; if only he'd quit being such a downer."

"His loss; not ours." Jimmy shook his head. "I can't believe he made the team."

Shane shrugged as he downed the bottle. He felt bad about what was said. He knew deep down that Gabe had become a good friend and that his feelings for Ronnie were genuine. He was slightly angry to what she had said to him, but understood that Ronnie would have to figure herself out before he could go after her.

Jimmy handed another bottle to Shane. "So what's the plan with…? Ronnie was it?"

Shane nodded. "Not sure Jim; figure that I give a couple of months and try again in the New Year." Shane took another drink and continued. "In the meantime; I'll just lay low, drink and get as much pussy as I can get until then."

"That's the Shane Milligan that I know." Jimmy clapped a hand on Shane's shoulder. Shane held back the feeling of wanting to tear his arm off and nodded. "Speaking of easy pussy; Tricia Parker's been looking for you for the last hour or so."

Shane's eyebrow lifted in surprise. "I didn't see her when I came in tonight. Is she still here?"

No sooner did Shane finish his question; he felt the slender arm of a woman come up around his waist. The girl in question was a blonde number a few inches shorter than Shane. She was pale skinned with a cheerleader's build. Shane turned and looked at her; a grin on his face. She was wearing a low-cut blouse to show off her ample breasts and a dark skirt that was cut just above the knee. On her feet were a pair of black heels and her wrists, neck, ears and a few fingers were adorned with gold jewelry.

"I've been waiting for you babe." Tricia purred. She turned to Jimmy and spoke. "Dana Whittler has been waiting for you. She should be in your room."

Jimmy finished the beer and placed it on the counter. "Well if you two excuse me; I have to continue my host duties for this party." He headed out of the kitchen, but turned to Shane. "Catch you in the morning?"

Shane nodded and Jimmy left the room. Tricia turned her full attention to Shane.

"So you got here kind of late. Something I should know about?"

Shane shook his head. "Nah just something I had to do. It's all over now."

"Good; I'd hate to have you thinking about anything serious right now." She pulled him close to her and whispered. "I've been waiting for an hour to do what I want to do to you."

"You want to do that right here?" Shane leered at her.

Tricia licked her lips. "Not this time; we need some privacy for what I'm going to do."

Shane smirked. "Well then, let's not waste anymore time then." Tricia turned and headed for the Shane's room. Shane swatted her on the butt as she turned. She squealed in a fit of giggles and headed for the room. Shane followed behind her and walked into the room.

Tricia had closed the door behind him and locked it. She pushed Shane onto the bed and they kissed for a few minutes. She pulled off his shirt and kissed him again; kissing her way down his muscular chest as she went. She undid his belt and pants; pulling the zipper open with her teeth. She tugged on the clothes for a moment until he was exposed.

"Ah, I see that someone's happy to see me." She purred at him as went to business; straddling his legs.

Shane lay there on the bed; trying to focus on what was going on at that moment. Deep down Shane was feeling guilt; as if he was cheating on Ronnie. He had said many a thing to Jimmy, but knew that this was wrong somehow. This wasn't him anymore. He continued to lay there as she worked on his manhood; thinking about another girl. He shook himself out of that thought and decided to live in this moment and not future moments.

Besides; old habits tend to die hard.

* * *

><p><em>So endeth this chapter in the sordid drama that is Degrassi.<em>

_First and foremost; thank you to all of you that have commented and left reviews. More thanks to those of you that keep reading this story. I thank you (as always) for your continued patience. _

_I think this is my longest chapter of this story to date! I was planning to split this chapter up into two parts and have some other things happen during the date. I wasn't really satisfied with that plan and changed it to this. __So was it what you were expecting? I'm sure that some of my more devoted readers may be disappointed. I hate to say it, but sometimes things don't work out. I truly feel that at this juncture in the story; the relationship between Ronnie and Shane may not be for the best. I really feel that Ronnie needs to find herself first. What happens next will come to be. _

_It is with this chapter that I'm now switching focus from Ronnie back to Gabe. I've been meaning to tell you guys what he's been doing. Now it is time to do so. Don't get me wrong, Ronnie really grew on me, but it is the way that stories progress._

_One final note: In respect to Aubrey Graham/Drake and all of his success; I never really liked his character on Degrassi: TNG. Jimmy Sr. was a jerk and a bit of an egotistic personality. I did feel bad for him getting shot by Rick, but that was about it. In that respect; Jimmy Jr. is much like his father was back in his high school days. Granted, Jimmy Sr. has become a better person in this storyline and is almost likable as a person. Jimmy Jr. isn't a likable person. It will only be a matter of time before Jimmy and Gabe cross paths and it may not be good for anyone (Don't worry; this will be down the line somewhere, not anytime soon). I have a feeling that Tricia will be an issue later down the road as well, but in the meantime she's merely there to move the story onwards._

_Thanks for your continued reading and I'll update soon. Feel free to message and review. Thanks!_


	18. Strange Brew Part I

_Here's the first of two parts. Enjoy!_

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><p><strong>Chapter Eighteen: <strong>Strange Brew Part I

Gabe glanced up the stairs and looked to the clock on the wall. He tapped his foot in an impatient manner and glanced back at the clock. He finally had enough and shouted up the stairs.

"Come on Ronnie! Get your butt in gear! We're going to be late!"

Gabe heard his sister's door open up. "I'll be down in a moment! Keep your boots on Green Arrow!"

Gabe rolled his eyes. "It's Green Lantern bookworm! You should know the difference by now for crying out loud!"

"I don't read comic books you nerd!" Ronnie shouted again. "I read literature!"

"Well hurry up!" Gabe huffed at his sister. He walked away from the stairs and paced back and forth in front of the couch. He pondered where the last three weeks had gone. Gabe had to admit that things were going great for him; he had an awesome girlfriend in Alyson Manning. School was actually something he looked forward to on a daily basis. He was doing well in his classes and being part of the wrestling team had given him that balance of activity that he needed. He had good friends, a great family and things were going well for him.

He heard footsteps coming down the stairs and came out of his thoughts. He watched his sister gracefully come down dressed in a dark green knee-length skirt, a cream colored blouse and brown cloak and boots. She looked like an adventurer from a fantasy novel.

"Lady Arcadia Moonflower; good choice there Ronnie." Gabe smiled. Ronnie merely curtseyed and smiled back. She took out a handmade wand and did a flourish.

"What do you think?" Ronnie asked.

"It's you sis." Gabe moved towards his sister. "Of course 'Witches of the Watchtower' was your favorite book series when you were younger."

"Still is Gabe, even when I started reading them myself." Ronnie looked at her brother and smiled. He was dressed up as a Green Lantern. He had on the black bodysuit with homemade green armor covering his entire forearms and shins. He was also sporting matching green boots, belt, mask and a lantern ring that he bought at Toronto's Comicon a few years back. She was impressed that he made the costume; instead of buying it. His looked like it was done by a professional.

"I see that you decided on the Alex Michaels version of the Lantern." Ronnie commented. "You're not carrying the Oa blade?"

Gabe shrugged. "Comicon is one thing Ronnie; school is completely different." He looked at himself. "Too much?"

"He's always been your favorite character from the comics." Ronnie smiled. "Besides, the 'Lantern Wars' story arc has been the most successful in the last ten years."

"Yeah; my favorite as well." Gabe grinned. He looked at the clock on the wall. "Shall we go then?"

The siblings headed out the front door; stopping for a moment to lock up. They headed down the street to school. The October air was cool, but not as cold as it would be in a few weeks. Gabe and Ronnie watched as smaller children went door to door; getting treats from their neighbors. Ronnie smiled as a few memories came back to her.

"Remember when dad used to take us trick-or-treating?"

Gabe smiled. "Yeah I remember. He used to inspect the bags after every door and take out the bad candies." Gabe chuckled. "You know that he was taking out all of the Snickers bars for mom, but we never stopped him.

"Mom would always thank him for that." Ronnie giggled. "To this day; I still give mom a Snickers just to be safe." The two shared a good laugh together and continued on.

Gabe sighed. "Ronnie; I'm sorry that I haven't been a good brother to you."

Ronnie stopped dead in her tracks and stared at her brother. She was nearly furious with him as she spoke.

"Gabriel Joseph are you insane?" She glared at him. "You have been there for me more this year than you have ever! What in the world would make you say something like that?!"

Gabe looked back at his sister. "I guess that I'm just feeling a little down on myself for the last few weeks." He sat down on a bench about two blocks from the school. Ronnie joined him on the bench as he took off his mask.

Ronnie put an arm around his shoulder. "Gabe you've been a great brother. You've been there when I really needed you. You were there after my fight; you talked to Shane about him and me dating."

"That's what I'm talking about." Gabe grumbled. "You two had a nice date and all, but nothing happened. I didn't want my little sister to be alone."

"Is this what this is all about?" Ronnie asked.

"I just wanted you to be happy Ronnie." Gabe shrugged.

"I'm happy Gabe." Ronnie smiled at him. "I've got two loving parents, great friends and a concerned and loving brother. I'm really and truly happy."

Gabe looked over to his baby sister; a smirk playing on his face. "You really mean that? Even when your big brother meddles in your life; you're still happy?"

Ronnie laughed. "Yes I do. I appreciate what you were trying to do, but I have the final say in which boyfriend OR girlfriend I so choose."

Gabe nodded and started to stand up. Ronnie followed suite and grabbed her brother by the arm. He turned and pulled his sister into a loving hug.

"I love you ya big dummy."

"Love you too bookworm."

Ronnie broke the hug and smiled. "Okay now that that is over; we've got a dance to get to and have some fun."

Gabe pulled the mask back on. "Shall we go Lady Arcadia?"

Ronnie curtseyed. "So gallant GL; yes we shall."

The siblings continued to the school. When they arrived; Degrassi was decorated for Halloween. The hallways leading to the gym were decked out in orange and black streamers and fake cobwebs were here and there.

"They really go all out here don't they?" Ronnie asked.

Gabe chuckled. "Usually they have more up. I guess that they put more money in the gym setup instead of the halls."

The two walked up to the ticket area and purchased their tickets. They walked into the gym and Ronnie let out a small gasp. The gym was decorated as an old haunted house with all of the spooky décor on the surrounding walls.

"I told you."

Ronnie nodded; not looking at her brother. She was surprised on how many people were here at the dance.

"It must be almost the whole school."

Gabe nodded. "The first dance is the most popular; outside of prom." He looked around for a familiar face; saying quick hellos to people he knew in classes or sports. He turned to his sister and smiled.

"Know if any of your friends are here?"

Ronnie shrugged. "I'm pretty sure that the Hogarts aren't; J.J. stated that the family was out of town this weekend. Emily and Nikki might be though."

Gabe nodded. "I know that Alyson said that she would be here." Gabe squinted off in the distance; pointing towards the refreshments. "I think that's Shane over there. You want to come with me or is that too weird?"

Ronnie nodded. "We're still friends Gabriel; we'll be fine."

The two headed towards the refreshment table. Gabe smiled when he saw Shane dressed up as a soldier. He had on worn out green fatigues and bandanna around his forehead. He had on old boots and about twenty pounds of gear on him.

"Private Milligan; as you were." Gabe smiled next to his friend.

Shane coughed as he took the cup from his lips. He wiped his mouth and turned. Shane smiled as he saw the two siblings; taking a moment to look both of them over.

"Sergeant Milligan actually; nice Green Lantern costume. That from the Lantern Wars?"

Gabe nodded, somewhat surprised. "I didn't take you as a comic reader."

Shane nodded. "I read mostly Justice League, but they mentioned it in there." He turned to Ronnie. "Good to see you again Lady Moonflower, but don't you have a kingdom to look over?"

Ronnie looked at Shane, surprised. "How did you know?"

Shane smirked this time. "While I never read the books, I watched the series on cable. You really look more the part than that actress that played her on the show."

"Flattery will get you nowhere Sergeant Milligan." Ronnie blushed slightly. "However, I'll take it as a compliment and thank you."

"Sure thing." Shane smiled.

"Have you seen any of the others?" Gabe asked, changing the subject.

"I saw Nicolette Coyne earlier; at least I think it was her." Shane took a drink of the punch. "I haven't seen your girl yet, but I'm sure that she's here." He turned to Ronnie and continued. "I saw that blonde friend of yours here and her older brother here a minute ago."

"Didn't feel like hitting a stoner?" Gabe asked. "Probably for the best; that boy barely has any brain cells left to function."

"Benny's here?" Ronnie groaned. "He stinks."

"Say what you mean, not mean what you say." Shane commented. "I have nothing against his sister, but Benny's not that bright."

Gabe shrugged and looked out in the crowd. He saw Emily Cameron heading their way minus her brother. She was dressed in safari clothing and smiled when she saw Ronnie.

"What's she supposed to be?" Shane whispered to Gabe.

"Knowing Emily like I do; I'm guessing either Bindi Irwin or Jane Goodall." Shane looked at Gabe confused. "Seriously?"

"Dude; science people are out of my league." Shane shrugged, causing Gabe to shake his head at him. "What?"

"Nothing man, I'm just surprised you didn't ask her about it." Gabe motioned for the two girls to come over.

Emily hugged Gabe and smiled. "Were you talking about me? I'm going as Bindi Irwin. You know that she's done so much for wildlife preservation in the past ten years."

"Told you dude." Gabe glanced at Shane; smiling. "Emily; this is Shane Milligan. Shane; this is Emily Cameron." The two exchange pleasantries. "I'm surprised that you two never really met each other."

"I've seen her around; mostly with Ronnie."

"Yeah I tend to blend in." Emily commented. "I'm not really that popular and all that."

"Sure are cute though." Shane smiled.

Emily looked at him in disbelief. "I'd like to think that I'm more than an attractive girl. My mind is just as important."

Gabe turned from the conversation that was now including his little sister. He had to smile at his friend; for all of his flirting would only get him in trouble with Emily. Emily; while an attractive girl believed that her mental merits were more important than her physical makeup. He watched the students dancing and having a good time. He disappeared into the crowd; looking for his girlfriend. He had walked a good portion of the gym when he heard his phone's ringtone chime over the music. He walked out into the hallway and answered.

"Hey I was just looking for you…"

_"Hey handsome…"_

Gabe could hear the sad tone in her voice. "What's the matter Alyson?"

_"Gabe, I'm sorry. I'm not going to be able to be at the dance tonight."_

Gabe sighed. "Tell me if it's something I did Alyson. I can take it."

_"What? Gods no Gabriel; you've been the best boyfriend I've ever had."_

"Then what is it?"

_"Can you meet me tonight after the dance? I'll explain everything I swear."_

"Yeah I can do that." Gabe nodded. "I take it I have to come alone?"

_"Normally I would say no, but just this once. I don't want to share this with anyone else yet."_

"Yeah, okay." Gabe smiled through the phone. "I'll see you after ten?"

_"Make it closer to eleven. I'll guarantee that I'll be there by then. I have to go babe. I love you."_

"Love you too Alyson." Gabe hung up his cellphone and sighed. He had been worried about his girlfriend. She had seemed distant in the last week or so. He didn't know what to make of it. He hoped that their talk later that night would either clean things up or make things worse.

Gabe took two steps and bumped into someone. He bumped them with such force that he knocked them over. He was quick enough to catch the young woman around the waist with one arm and caught the falling top hat with his free hand. He helped the woman up and smiled.

She was about his sister's height and had some curves to her. He was reminded of one of the older actresses that his grandmother watched; Hedy Lamarr and Grace Kelly came to his mind. She had long, dark hair that seemed to go past her shoulders. He noticed the eyes; dark and mesmerizing. He almost chuckled out loud and noticed that she was dressed as a stage magician.

"Are you okay? I'm sorry about that; I wasn't paying attention." Gabe helped her to standing position. She smiled and blushed at him.

"I'm fine. Thank you for catching me. It would have been embarrassing if I would have fallen." She brushed herself off quickly. "My hat please?"

Gabe nodded. "Of course dear Zatanna; wouldn't want your rabbits to escape."

The woman smiled grew bigger. "You're portraying Alex Michaels?"

"Best Lantern of the last couple of years." Gabe smiled. "Of course if it wasn't for you; I would have died."

"Or you wouldn't have gotten the Oa blade."

"Details, details." Gabe laughed. "Sorry, I'm Gabe Mason."

She smiled at him brightly. "I know; we're in the same art and English classes." She placed a gloved hand out. "Francine Davison."

"I know." Gabe kissed the gloved hand. "Sorry about knocking you over."

Francine merely blushed more and smiled. "It's okay. I'll see you in class." With that, she disappeared with a few other girls that Gabe recognized, but couldn't place them. He shook his head and walked towards the bathrooms.

Gabe had finished with his business and headed towards the sinks. He sighed as he washed his hands. He noticed the door open and a tall teen with glasses walk in. He continued to wash his hands when he heard what sounded like a gunshot and someone fall to the ground. He jumped and looked to the last stall where the kid had headed. He didn't see anyone there. He opened the stall and there was no one there. He smelled a faint smell of gunpowder and iron but that was it. He shook his head and headed towards the sinks again. He took off his mask and splashed some cold water in his face. He looked in the mirror and was surprised at what he saw.

He saw a teenage boy about his age with glasses and long hair; wearing a suit. He looked like someone had dumped feathers and glue on him.

"Hey man, are you alright?"

The boy didn't look at him. He merely stared at the mirror for a moment or two. Gabe looked at the boy concerned. He asked him again if he was alright, but the boy walked off into the stall door and through it. Gabe's eyes grew wide and backed out of the bathroom. He entered the hallway and stood watching the door for a few moments. He turned at the sound of footsteps quickly approaching him. He collided with the running form of Benny Cameron; both boys hitting the floor.

Gabe was up before Benny knew what happened. He grabbed Benny by the shoulders and tried to shake him, but his eyes were wild and scared.

"Benny? Benny!" Benny turned to Gabe voice. He seemed to realize that he might be safe. Benny took a few deep breaths and looked at Gabe.

"Dude, you'll never believe what I fucking saw man!" Benny was panicked still, but seemed to be coming around.

"Benny; you need to calm down." Gabe nodded. "You can tell me what you saw, but you need to take it easy."

Benny took a few more breaths and somewhat calmed down. "I was out by the greenhouse and lighting up a joint. Man, I got some real tight stuff from…"

"Benny; focus for me." Gabe ordered. "What did you see?"

"Sorry man; so I'm out lighting a joint and took a couple of hits off of it. I was the only one out there right, so it's really quiet out there. I'm taking another hit and then I hear this creaking sound. I ignore it at first, but for some reason it sounds louder to me. I look over to the greenhouse and the door's wide open."

"I thought that the staff locks the doors on that for the weekends?"

"Most of the time Grandpa does that." Benny commented. "He's been leaving it unlocked for students to come work on it during the weekends. That's until winter sets in." Gabe nodded and motioned for Benny to continue. "So I move a few steps closer to the greenhouse and right in the middle is this kid hanging from a rope."

Gabe looked at Benny in surprise. Benny shook his head. "I knew that you didn't believe me."

"No, it's not that I don't believe you; wait until you hear this." Gabe explained what happened to him in the bathrooms. When Gabe finished with his story; Benny looked at him in surprise with a smile on his face.

"You sure that you're not on something Gabe?"

Gabe glared at him. "Dude I'm completely sober." He helped Benny off of the floor. "We need to find Simpson and tell him about this."

Benny nodded. They heard footsteps coming at them and noticed a dark-haired girl dressed like the Bride of Frankenstein. She ran into Gabe and seemed hysterical. Gabe pulled her closer to him and let her cry for a moment.

"Gabe! Gabe! Oh my God I'm so glad I found you!"

He recognized the voice; even in hysterics. "Nikki; you're safe now." Gabe turned to Benny. "I need you to find Simpson and tell him to meet us here. Don't go for a smoke or anything else; just find him and bring him back here."

Benny nodded. "Should I say anything else to any of the teachers?"

"No, there's no reason to alarm anyone." Gabe replied. "Just calmly tell him that I want to talk to him out here in private. No need to alarm anyone."

Benny nodded and walked towards the gym. He held Nikki as she slowly calmed down. Gabe stared at the empty hallways and frowned.

"What the hell is going on around here?" He whispered to no one.

* * *

><p><em>So what is going on at Degrassi? What did Nikki see that spooked her so badly? Find out in the second part of Strange Brew, which should be out in the next few weeks.<em>

_I really wanted to tell a Samhain/Halloween story in a fic. It's always been my favorite holiday and not because of the free candy. It actually played out perfectly; timeline wise in this story. I think it's also a interesting transition from one Mason child to the next. I know that you might read this and think 'this is lame'. It's supposed to be. It's me having a little fun and in the same stroke of the pen; getting a little more in-depth with Gabe and the other students at Degrassi. _

_Think of this as a Degrassi mini. Although this mini will actually reflect on my canon version of this story. _

_Thank you guys for your continued reading of this fiction. Every time I check my traffic and all I see are good numbers; it makes me smile. Thank you for your patience and once this two-part is done; to get back on track and see what Gabe's been up to recently. _


	19. Strange Brew Part II

_And here is the second part. Enjoy!_

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><p><strong>Chapter Nineteen: <strong>Strange Brew Part II

Principal Archibald "Archie" Simpson had been through a lot in his time at Degrassi. He had been a student and had found a fellow student dead. He had seen what choices his friends had made and tried his best not to follow down that path. As a teacher he had gone through cancer, a school shooting and falsely accused as a rapist. Things as a principal had been somewhat easier, but not by much. He had two students commit suicide as a principal; each could have been handled in time.

He rubbed his temples in a circular motion; trying to relieve some of the stress. He looked up to see the guidance counselor; Darcy Edwards nee Parker looking at him.

"Do we have a good idea of what's going on?"

Darcy shrugged. "I've had Toby and Marco go check the areas where the kids claim to have seen something. When they got back; Blue and Imogen went out and double checked the same areas. In both cases; they didn't find anything out of the ordinary."

"You talked to them?"

Darcy nodded. "All three of them are sticking to their stories."

Simpson sighed. "So Ms. Coyne sees a girl in the art room painting; goes to talk to her and sees that the girl is painting a portrait in blood. She runs out and runs into Mr. Mason and my grandson; who each claim to have seen ghosts." Simpson stood up and shook his head. "If this is someone's idea of a really sick joke…"

Darcy interrupted him. "You saw their faces Archie; two of the three of them were scared out of their minds. Mr. Mason was the only one that wasn't, but I'm sure he was before consoling his friends."

"I'm not sure what to do here Darcy." Simpson looked out the window. "Two of the three of them are stone sober; I'm sure of that. My grandson? I know he's not." He turned to the counselor. "I'll talk to them but I'm not sure punishment is the way to go on this."

Darcy nodded again. "I'll send them in." As she turned to leave; she stopped and looked at him. "Archie; this might not make sense, but try to hear me out."

Simpson nodded and motioned for her to continue. "When I was in Africa all those years ago; I'd seen things that I couldn't explain either. There was one moment that stands out in my mind. This girl who was no older than fifteen had been killed in the village of where I was working at that time. About a month later; there was an uproar in the village square real late in the night. I went out to help; thinking that it was some animal, but I was way off."

"What happened?"

"Some of the villagers noticed that there were people that were out causing problems. They were making it a point to chase these people out of the village. One of the troublemakers was that girl." Darcy shuddered. "I looked straight at her and watched her run away. She looked at me as she was running away."

Simpson looked at her confused. "But she was dead…"

"I saw her placed in a grave Archie. I know she was dead." Darcy looked at her boss. "She was running around; the witch doctor said she was angry because the person that killed her was still loose." She leaned against the door. "It was strange, but the village had to take care of it. Everyone was part of a protection ritual; myself included. We weren't bothered after that, but there were times we all thought we would see her from time to time."

"I never knew…"

Darcy nodded. "Not many people know about what I just told you. I never told my family or friends about it. I had a hard time working it out in my head as well. I still do." She turned to leave again. "Whether it's a prank or not; they were scared as much as I was back then. Try to take it easy on all of them." She then walked out the door and let the kids come in.

The three students walked in; Nikki and Gabe taking the seats in front of the desk. Benny stood against the wall behind the two of them. Principal Simpson watched the three of them; he could tell that something spooked them. He nodded and decided to find out what happened.

_A short time later…_

Veronica Mason wandered out into the hallway with Emily and Shane behind her. They had been having a good time dancing and talking. Ronnie noticed that her brother had been missing for a while and wasn't sure he had disappeared. They hadn't seen Nikki either; which was more concerning for Ronnie. They decided to go looking for them. They had just passed the main entrance when Ronnie noticed her best friend and brother along with Benny walking out of the principal's office. They met just in front of the office desk and talked. Nikki had run up to Ronnie and hugged her tightly. Emily walked up to her brother; only for Benny to walk out the front door. She went after him only to be stopped by Principal Simpson. Shane walked up to Gabe.

"What is going on?" Shane could see something was wrong, but couldn't tell what the problem was. He could see that Gabe had a haunted look on his face.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." Gabe muttered. "This has been the strangest Halloween I've ever experienced."

"I can tell." Shane looked at his friend; concerned. "Anything that you want to share?"

Gabe was about to say something when Simpson came up by him. "Are you sure that you're okay?"

"I'm fine Mr. Simpson. Thank you for your time." Simpson nodded and left towards the gymnasium. "Shane let's just leave it at that." Shane nodded and the two turned looked at the girls. "I don't know about you two, but I'm done for the night."

"Don't be like that Gabe; it'll be fine." Emily smiled. "I know that you're not in serious trouble, but I'm surprised that you're hanging out with my brother."

"He's not hanging out with Benny;" Nikki started. "We just had something very odd happen." She smiled at him. "If it wasn't for Gabe; I would still be very upset and shaken."

"Look," Gabe stated in an irritated voice. "I'm chalking tonight up to some really weird shit went down and honestly; I'm leaving it at that." He headed for the door. "If you excuse me; I think I'll go and head on home. Ronnie; don't be out too late." Gabe had spoken in an authoritative voice; something that not one of the group had ever heard before. Gabe headed out the main doors and headed home.

Shane turned to the group; speaking as he pointed at the door. "Okay; someone want to explain to me what the hell is going on? Gabe disappears for about an hour, and then comes back with Burn Boy and Nikki; only he's all quiet and ticked off to the nth degree."

Nikki sighed and started the whole story. She had explained what she was doing and had ran into Gabe and Benny after what happened in the art room. She then explained what had happened in Mr. Simpson's office. She left no details out in her version of the story. When she had finished; she turned her attention to everyone.

Shane chuckled. "That's what happened? The three of you got spooked by someone playing a Halloween prank?"

Nikki looked at Shane; her eyes shooting him daggers. "I know what I saw! She seemed as real as us standing here!"

"I'm not saying that it didn't happen, but you have to admit that it's hard to believe." Emily replied; looking at Shane and Nikki. Nikki glared back at her; to which she put her hands up. "Hey I'm just saying. It's a bit weird; that's all."

Emily had turned to where Ronnie was standing a minute ago; only to see that she moved closer to the door. The rest of the group looked and followed her.

Nikki placed a hand on Ronnie's shoulder. Ronnie took a deep breath. "Still with us?"

She turned to her closest friend. "Yeah." She turned back and watched the shadow of her brother; which no one could see anymore from that vantage point. She sighed and looked back at Nikki. "I worry about him so much."

"We all do sweetness." Shane came up behind them. "He just seemed so weird. Is there something that you want to share with us?"

Ronnie sighed. "It's not my story to tell…"

_As Eleven O'clock moves closer…_

The taxi pulled up to the Manning residence. The back door opened and Alyson Manning had stepped out. She moved to the front passenger door and paid the driver. The taxi drove off into the night and Alyson moved closer to the front door. As she was digging for her keys in her purse, she heard a sigh from the front porch. She looked up and saw a mass. She reached in and found a can of mace.

"I'm not afraid to mace you! This is the bear grade stuff!"

The person spoke; the voice sounded tired and sad. "You'd mace your boyfriend?"

Alyson relaxed a bit. "Gabe, is that you babe?"

"Yeah. Sorry to scare you like that."

Alyson sighed. "No it's fine. I wasn't expecting you for a while." She looked him over. He was dressed in his old Chuck Taylors, beat-up pair of jeans, a dark beanie and a beat up old sweatshirt. "You didn't want to wear your costume?"

Gabe shuddered. "Could we head in where it's warmer? I'm freezing."

Alyson nodded and unlocked the front door. She walked in and Gabe followed her in. She locked the door and motioned for Gabe to follow her into the kitchen. She put her purse down and took off her dark bridge coat. She noticed that Gabe took a seat at the dinner table; removing his sweatshirt and beanie. She looked at his and nearly gasped; her good mood slowly started to dissipate. His voice mirrored his looks; he looked tired and beat up.

"Gods what happened to you?" She moved closer to him. "Did you get into a fight with that whore?" She sat in the chair next to him. "I'll make her pay for what she did."

Gabe chuckled a bit; then winced. "No it's nothing like that." He looked around. "Mom and Dad are gone?"

Alyson got up and walked into the bathroom. "Yeah, mom had to go to Montreal for some convention and dad went with her." She came back out with what looked like a small first aid kit. "So I was supposed to go hang out with Angie, but she was going to a party in the city. She invited me to go, but I decided to just head back here and make the best of the night. That's when I called you."

She sat back down and looked him over. "So what happened to you?"

Gabe sighed and went on about what happened after he talked to her. He told her about the two boys in the bathroom, the incidents with Nikki and Benny and the talk with Simpson.

"Wait; you're hanging out with burn boy?"

"He ran into me literally. He was really freaked out."

She nodded as she applied a little peroxide to a cotton ball. She dabbed some on a scratch on his chin. Gabe didn't even flinch when she applied it. "So what did Simpson say?"

"Strangely nothing; which is a surprise to me. I figured that he'd yell or put us in detention for not being in the dance. He was…" Gabe fidgeted for a moment before continuing. "He almost seemed sympathetic; at least with Nikki and I. Benny on the other hand wasn't as lucky."

"Grandpa let him have it?" Alyson tossed the cotton ball in a small bag. She reached for another one.

"I can only guess." Gabe offered his left arm to her. "I high-tailed it out of there after getting annoyed with some of the commentary I was receiving." Gabe winced for a second when Alyson got his elbow. "I loathe Halloween."

Alyson looked at him with sympathy. "Should I ask?"

Gabe looked into his girlfriend's eyes and smiled. "I suppose I can let you know."

"Only if you also include why in the seven levels of hell that you're so beat up." Alyson grumbled. "You look like you got hit by a bus."

"That's an easy one to answer." Gabe shrugged. "It actually ties into the whole story."

* * *

><p><em>I know; I'm such a bastard! <em>

_In truth, I didn't want to end it here. There's a whole lot more to tell between these two. However; it happen to work out that this would be a perfect stopping point. So the story will continue next chapter with Alyson and Gabe talking._

_I want to thank all of you for being so loyal and patient in waiting for the next chapter month after month. I've been trying to keep up with the story, but it's been very hard recently. I'll do my best to keep up with once a month; if not more than that._

_Something that I would like to ask you readers: There are points in the story (much like this chapter) that conversations and story points get left out for various reasons. I was thinking of putting those parts into another working title (kind of like cut scenes on DVDs and Blu-Ray. What do you think?_

_Thanks for following! _


	20. You Get What You Give

_So it's late; sue me. Actually don't. All you would get is a half-eaten bag of M&Ms. New chapter!_

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><p><strong>Chapter Twenty: <strong>You Get What You Give

Gabe leaned back in the chair. He stretched his shoulders; making one of them pop loudly. He grunted and sighed as he returned to where he was sitting originally. "You know when we talk about things; I always talk about being the good guy?"

Alyson took an alcohol soaked cotton ball and applied it to his eyebrow. "We talk a lot about trying to be good people, or better people." She rubbed the cotton ball against the eyebrow. "But I think that you're going in a totally different direction."

"It has something to do with that." Gabe winced a bit, but didn't move. "I'm talking about being a good guy."

"Like a superhero?" Alyson questioned. "I think you really lost me at that point. Although I've wondered if you're from another planet."

"What do you mean?"

Alyson threw the used cotton ball away. "The way you are with people. You actually treat everyone you know with so much kindness and love. It's one of the things I noticed about you the first time we talked."

"If I'm the last son of Krypton; how come I don't have the powers?" Alyson snickered as she rolled her eyes. "But I get where you're coming from Ally. I'm not like the rest of our class. I'm different."

"Is that so bad?"

"What's that?"

Alyson looked at him. "Is being so different such a bad thing?" She closed the peroxide bottle up and put the first aid kit away in the bathroom. She came out and stood at the island in the kitchen. Gabe turned and watched her. "Gabriel; you're the type of guy that EVERY parent want their daughter to bring home. Ever since you came over for dinner a month ago; you're the topic of conversation. My family; including my parents, adore you! I adore you! Gods I love you!"

Gabe blinked a couple of times at Alyson. "You love me?"

"What's not to love!?" Alyson shouted. "You sit and wait for me to come home and then come in and tell me about your day. While you're doing this; I'm patching you up and I don't question it. There is something wrong about this!"

Gabe looked at her. "What's so wrong with that? I share everything with you."

Alyson laughed in a high, contemptuous laugh. "Really?" She slammed her hand on the counter. "Then why the hell do you look like you took on Ogre Morgan?"

Gabe smiled and started to shake. Alyson looked at Gabe like there was something wrong with him. Gabe couldn't hold in his laughter and broke out laughing. Alyson looked at him before rolling her eyes and trying hard not to laugh with him. This caused Gabe to laugh harder; causing him to wince a bit and he groaned. Alyson shook her head; her light laughter chiming in.

"You got into a fight with Ogre Morgan, didn't you?" Gabe merely nodded; holding his sides. Alyson crossed her arms and watched him. "I'm sure that there's a good reason for you doing so?"

"I was protecting some younger kids."

"Huh?"

Gabe sighed. "The last five or six Halloweens have been bad; for me at least." Alyson motioned for him to continue. "I was ten when it first happened. Ronnie was sick that year and couldn't go out for candy. Juliette and I went out and we were planning to split it with Ronnie."

"Please don't mention her name; you know how I feel about her."

"Okay, but keep in mind that she's involved with me on most of this story." Alyson nodded and Gabe continued. "We were heading back and a couple of kids jumped us. They got away with my bag and destroyed my costume. She got off with some bumps and bruises. We got home and mom freaked. Dad had to talk her down about pressing charges. We had compromised on me taking Tae Kwon Do."

"So that's how you started in that."

Gabe nodded. "Yeah. I still love practicing." Gabe cleared his throat and continued. "The next two years were pretty much the same thing; go out and get candy and head on back home. I made it a point to make sure the girls would go another way. Sure enough; the same thing happened to me at eleven and twelve. Thirteen I was able to fight back. I ended up breaking a kid's nose. Between that and a good growth spurt and no one wanted to mess with me after that."

"I took Ronnie and her friends when I was fourteen. After that; we really just kind of lost interest. Ronnie was really focused on school and didn't want to go out." Gabe moved to where his girlfriend was standing. "So I went out, but not for the reasons of getting candy…"

"You wanted to make sure that no one had to go through what you went through." Alyson finished, moving closer to him. "That's a noble idea. A really stupid practice, but a noble idea."

"I didn't say it was my brightest of ideas." Gabe chuckled; pulling Alyson into a hug. "I would have gotten away from the cops last year if it wasn't for the cape."

Alyson put her arms around Gabe's neck. "Do I want to know?"

Gabe lifted her onto the island and sat her on the countertop. She pulled him closer and crossed her legs behind the small of his back. He had his wrists crossed at the small of her back. They had met foreheads in the middle as Gabe continued.

"You'd be surprised how many people actually run away from Batman."

Alyson broke out into riotous laughter and pulled away from Gabe. "Only you would put that into practice." Gabe laughed with her. "So what did your parents say?"

Gabe blushed. "Actually; you're the fourth person to know about it. My Uncle Lucas and Aunt Mia were watching my sister while my folks were out that night. My uncle said that they would talk to my parents and he never did. Instead he sat me down and laughed at the whole situation." Alyson laughed harder and Gabe smiled. "Can you picture me in a Batman costume standing on my doorstep with two cops holding me in place?"

Alyson snorted and hugged Gabe; laughing hysterically. Gabe couldn't hold it back and laughed with her. They were finally able to calm down after five minutes. As much of a rough day Gabe had had; it felt good to laugh with someone about his day.

"You really know how to make a girl feel better about her day." Alyson pulled him closer and kissed him on the lips. She looked at her watch and groaned. "And now you have to leave."

Gabe gently grabbed her wrist and looked at the watch. "No, not really." He let go of her wrist and kissed her again. Alyson broke from the kiss.

"Yeah you do; it's quarter to midnight. You have a curfew."

"Yeah I do, but if my folks think that I have came home already…"

Alyson slapped his arm. "You snuck out?! Do you realize how much trouble…?"

Gabe kissed her again. "Yeah and it's a risk I'll take. You said that you wanted to talk to me about something important. Getting grounded will be worth it."

Alyson looked at him. "It can wait another day."

"This coming from the girl that has a boy in her house with her parents gone?" Gabe pointed back. "Where are the parentals anyway?"

"They are out of town." Alyson took a deep breath. "Mom had a conference in Montreal and dad went with her. My cousin was supposed to come by but bailed and headed to a party." She tried to catch her breath but felt her pulse race. "So we're alone?"

"It seems like it." Gabe smiled. "I want to hear what you wanted to tell me."

"It might be better if I show you." Alyson nodded, pushing Gabe back and sliding off of the countertop. "Follow me up to my room."

"You're being a little forward there Miss Manning." Gabe stated. Alyson rolled her eyes and grabbed his hand.

"Now don't go thinking like the rest of the boys and think this is about you getting lucky. It's easier for me to show you what I'm talking about than actually explaining it."

The two went upstairs and got to the top of the landing. Gabe noticed that Alyson's home was similar to theirs except the upstairs. There was a full size bathroom on the right and the rest of the upstairs was an open area. He noticed that the bedroom was more similar to a loft than a bedroom. The coolest part was the skylight over the bedroom part of the upstairs. He had to smile at the idea.

"Wicked" Gabe grinned. "I love this room."

"It was mom and my idea really." Alyson let go his hand. "Ever since I was a little girl; I've loved nature and being outdoors. Grandpa Nash used to take me camping with him over the summers before he passed a few years ago." She took off her shoes and headed towards an outside door. Gabe looked and saw that the doorway lead to a deck.

Gabe proceeded to take off his sneakers and looked around the open room. He noticed a computer on her desk and a good sized library filled with hundreds of books. He made his way over to the bed and noticed on the nightstand that there were some photos. One photo he happened to notice was the same one that he had of Alyson and himself. This caused him to chuckle a bit to himself. He continued to walk around and noticed a small table with little items all over it. There were some candles and other odd items on it. He looked at a necklace that she wore occasionally. Gabe looked at it for a few moments and then realized what it was. He figured it out and followed Alyson out to the balcony.

He walked a small pathway that led to an open deck. Gabe could see that the deck overlooked the backyard. She was looking out into the sky and seemed to be lost in thought. Her arms were crossed over her breasts; trying to stay warm on that late October night. What surprised him the most was that Alyson wore a completely white outfit. The moon's reflection played on the dress and skin; she's so beautiful was all Gabe could think to himself. He walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her abdomen. She took in a deep breath and sighed; crossing her arms on his.

"I'm sorry if I scared you babe." Gabe whispered. "You are absolutely stunning in the moonlight."

Alyson sighed. "No you didn't Gabriel; I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn't hear you." He placed a kiss on her neck, causing her to sigh with contentment.

"You want to share with me?"

"Am I crazy?" Alyson started after a moment. Gabe waited for her to continue. "I mean I spent last year going through my own personal hell. I come back home to Toronto; thinking that this year's going to be just as bad. What do I find instead but welcoming friends and my own personal guardian angel?"

"Everyone deserves someone to love Alyson." Gabe stated after a moment. "We all deserve to be happy and feel wanted; a sense to belong. From what you told me about the last couple of years; you need a break. Maybe the Fates decided that things would work out for you."

Alyson broke away from her boyfriend. "What did you just say?"

"Oh come on; you're surprised that I figured it out?" Gabe smiled at her.

"Say it." Alyson stated in a flat voice. "Say the word Gabriel or I won't believe you."

"You're a witch." Gabe said clear as a bell. "You practice witchcraft; you're a witch."

Alyson stared at him. She had a tear going down her cheek. "How do you do it?" Alyson spoke in barely a whisper, but he could hear every word. "How have you broken through each and every wall that I throw up? I try to keep people out but you're the only one that keeps getting past them all. How?"

Gabe looked down at his shoes and rubbed them together. He sighed and looked at her. "Babe, I really wished I knew." He took a breath and continued. "I could list at least ten reasons to how I know things with the easiest answer being that I pay attention." He took a step closer to her. "Just know that I love you as much as you love me." He pulled her into an embrace and kissed her on the lips. He broke the loving contact and headed back towards her room.

Alyson looked up at the sky; knowing that Gabriel put everything into that one gesture. She heard the front door open and close. It was then that she fell to her knees and began sobbing.

* * *

><p><em>I can hear all of you out there literally yelling now: What were you doing?! Worst chapter ever! <em>

_Yada, Yada, Yada._

_I had to rewrite this damn chapter twice to get a result that I liked. This was the result. Yes, it's not a great result. Alyson has a lot of unresolved issues that she's working on and Gabe has been a rock for her. Gabe figured out what she wanted to talk about and it threw her off completely. __Is this the end for Alyson and Gabe? Let's go with an impasse at this time. We'll see how in the next chapter or so how this chapter with affect both Alyson and Gabe._

_One more thing that I'm working on is connected and it will canonical to **The Kids are All Right**. I was able to get some feedback on an idea I posted at the end of last chapter's notes. Many thanks to CrashAgainstMySkin for the opinion that will make it possible. I will be working on a companion piece to this story that will take parts that I edited out of the original manuscript due to length or just not thinking that it was important at the time. I will admit that I won't work on that one as much. It will be updated here and there as I go through and reread parts of the original and clean it up. _

_Start looking forward to **Bits and Pieces **here by the end of October or early November. _

_So many thanks to my faithful readers and making this one of my more popular stories. Thank you for your continued reading!_


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